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july
7 20
More than 1,500 people gather for a Black Lives Matter march on June 3 in Kingston. Photo by Chris Rahm THE FUTURE IS NOW, PAGE 12
13 INTRODUCTION by Melissa Everett
Business as usual is no longer an option.
14 FOOD The Future of Food & Farms by Max Kutner
Groups in the region are working on creating a more just and equitable food system.
22 EDUCATION Pandemic Pivot by Katie Navarra
Schools across the region—from kindergarten to higher ed—are questioning long-held assumptions.
24 RACIAL EQUITY
Container-To-Table
How to Join the Antiracist Future in the HV
by Abby Foster
by Stephanie Alinsug
John Lekic of Farmers & Chefs is growing greens in a shipping container in his parking lot.
White people must turn listen to the pleas of Black and non-Black people of color.
18 ECONOMY
Who Watches the Watchmen?
Pause, Pivot, Reimagine
The repeal of 50-A, which concealed police records from the public, was just the start of reform.
by Melissa Everett
Now is the time to follow through on ideas we’ve had for years but not acted on.
Basic Income Guarantee by Dalvin Aboagye
A pilot program in Hudson associated with Andrew Yang’s nonprofit is going to give away free money.
Remote Work: A Home-Base Climate Solution by John Lyons
The benefits of remote work extend beyond workers and employers to the environment.
Free Stimulus for the Hudson Valley by Michael H. Shuman
The community economics visionary explains how to move our money from Wall Street to Main Street.
by beetle bailey
What Does It Mean to Defund the Police? by Alexander Reed Kelly
The Future is Now: Toward a Better New Normal 36 LAND USE Taking Back the Streets by Cynthia Nikitin
Between March 5 and May 31, 260 cities on six continents had expanded municipal public space.
A talk with Alex Vitale, author of The End of Policing, on alternatives to our current police framework.
Fossil Fuels on the Brink
Statues of Limitation
The renewables sector has shown that it can be an engine of well-paid, community-based jobs.
Monuments in Academy Green Park in Kingston spark a call for commemorative justice.
Threshold Moment: Q&A with Ned Sullivan
by Frances Cathryn
Why Abolish the Police? by Kwame Holmes
All the nonabolitionist reforms to policing have failed. What about neighborhood pods instead?
34 JUST TRANSITION by Helene Lesterlin
The Good Work Institute believes the way forward is by aligning around a clear framework of values.
by Cordelia Schiller
by Brian K. Mahoney
Scenic Hudson’s initiatives across the region present a model for collaborative engagement.
43 WELLNESS Healthcare Reimagined by Wendy Kagan
Three local changemakers explain their ideas for responsive, resilient, hyperlocal wellness.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM 3
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FRONT MATTER 6 On the Cover: Pauline Decarmo 8 Esteemed Reader 11 Editor’s Note
COMMUNITY PAGES 58 Black Dirt Resilience: Warwick When the COVID-19 shutdown hit, Warwick residents circled the wagons. An e-commerce pushed helped many of the smaller businesses get online and together they endured.
july
Chronogrammies:
Readers’ Choice Winners 64 The Big Reveal Our inaugural readers’ choice awards garnered participation from 20,000 community members, who cast 92,000 votes for their favorite Hudson Valley businesses across 128 categories.
HOROSCOPES 92 Saturn’s Last Stand: “Do the Work” Lorelai Kude scans the skies for what’s to come in July. Beware the Retrograde Lord of Karma!
ARTS 86 Music Album reviews of Music from the Early 21st Century by Bobby Previte/Jamie Saft/Nels Cline, Natural State by Aliza Hava, Grass or Gravel? by Pitchfork Militia, and Redheaded Friend by Robert Burke Warren.
87 Books
Carolyn Quimby reviews Nothing Can Hurt You, a kaleidoscopically told murder novel by Bard alum Nicola Maye Goldberg, plus five short book reviews.
88 Poetry Poems by Anne Carly Abad, Eileen Bailey, Suzanne Chika, Carolyn Corbett, Destiny Dubetsky, Roberta Gould, Anthony Grillo, Emily Hadden, John Hansen, Frank Inello, Billy Internicola, Mary Kathryn Jablonski, Kelly Kalleberg, Yana Kane, John Kiersten, Richard Levine, Gregory Luce, Harold Porr, Lily Raper, Sharon Rousseau, George J. Searles, Noel Sloboda, Abigail Welhouse, and Tarssa Yazdani. Edited by Phillip X Levine.
91 Exhibits
A gallery of virtual and actual shows this month.
96 Parting Shot
The cavernous ArtPort exhibition space on Kingston’s waterfront capitalizes on its spacious digs to offer two art exhibitions you can visit in person.
Hiking above North/South Lake. Photo: Jessica Nayor CHRONOGRAMMIES, PAGE 64
7/20 CHRONOGRAM 5
on the cover
Unholy IV
Pauline Decarmo, acrylic on canvas, 2017
Photo by David McIntyre
“I painted it black, and then I just took a razorblade and for hours and hours I just scratched into it all the words for the different things I was feeling.” —Pauline Decarmo on Unholy IV
M
y work is based on my surroundings, past and present,” says Pauline Decarmo in her artist mission statement. “I’m motivated by things that move me, thrill me, and anger me.” There’s certainly a lot of the latter motivator coming through in Unholy IV, one of four works in a polyptych by the painter. Which isn’t surprising, given the moments in which it was made: Although the painting bears the Roman numeral IV in its title, it was actually the first of the foursome to be created, a reaction by Decarmo to the 2016 presidential election and the inauguration that followed. “I was angry and in disbelief, and I took it out on my canvas,” she recounts. “I painted it black, and then I just took a razorblade and for hours and hours I just scratched into it all the words for the different things I was feeling.” The three yellow lines rising above the dark dissonance of the background are one of the symbols used by the Black Lives Matter movement, explains Decarmo. “Once the shock [of the election’s outcome] had left me a little, I was able to become more playful with my paintings while
6 CHRONOGRAM 7/20
still making a statement.” The polyptych’s remaining abstract images are both playful and caustic, each depicting a smeary-but-familiar porcine figure with an orangey face and an exaggeratedly swept-back combover. In Unholy I, he’s a lonely, downcast little boy with a dunce cap and a black cloud hovering nearby; in Unholy II, he’s a would-be puppet master whose marionette strings seem to control a yellow egg yolk blob (the sun?); and in Unholy III, he’s swinging helplessly by his ankles, Mussolini-style, before a crowd of solemn onlookers. At least that’s how this viewer sees them. The artist herself, however, maintains that her works are open to interpretation. “They’re allegorical,” she says. “They can mean whatever you want them to mean.” Decarmo was born in Guyana and raised in Jamaica, Queens, by a single mother of eight. “Queens was very tough, I had to get out of there as fast I could,” she recalls, adding that she was encouraged by her high school art teacher, studied at Parsons School of Design and CUNY. “I guess some of why my paintings have been dark is because the hard stuff from
back then is coming out through them, too. Also, I’m very influenced by a lot of old blackand-white movies and the industrial areas around the places I’ve lived in.” During the creation of the Unholy series, Decarmo’s primary place of residence has been Hudson, where she and her wife, designer and art curator Sherry Jo Williams, have lived since 2011. (The couple also keeps an apartment in Inwood.) All four Unholy paintings are currently for sale and viewable via Hudson Art Fair, an online, guest-curated gallery set up by artists and social entrepreneurs to support charities helping Hudson during the COVID-19 crisis. Although greatly heartened by the mounting demonstrations that have arisen after the police murders of George Floyd, Breona Taylor, and others, Decarmo, a breast cancer survivor with a compromised immune system, has been unable to join the marchers in the streets herself. “I haven’t been able to protest in person,” she says. “So my job is to show my protesting in my art.” Portfolio: Paulinedecarmoartist.com. —Peter Aaron
EDITORIAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Brian K. Mahoney bmahoney@chronogram.com CREATIVE DIRECTOR David C. Perry dperry@chronogram.com DIGITAL EDITOR Marie Doyon mdoyon@chronogram.com ARTS EDITOR Peter Aaron music@chronogram.com HEALTH & WELLNESS EDITOR Wendy Kagan health@chronogram.com
COME UP FOR AIR Escape to nature this summer.
HOME EDITOR Mary Angeles Armstrong home@chronogram.com POETRY EDITOR Phillip X Levine poetry@chronogram.com CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Anne Pyburn Craig apcraig@chronogram.com CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Phillip Pantuso ppantuso@chronogram.com
contributors Dalvin Aboagye, Stephanie Alinsug, beetle bailey, Winona Barton-Ballentine, Frances Cathryn, Melissa Dempsey, Michael Eck, Melissa Everett, Kwame Homes, Alexander Reed Kelly, Lorelai Kude, Max Kutner, Helene Lesterlin, John Lyons, Cynthia Nikitin, Katie Navarra, Haviland S Nichols, Carolyn Quimby, Allison Reynolds, John Rodat, Seth Rogovoy, Cordelia Schiller, Jeremy Schwartz, Michael Shuman
PUBLISHING FOUNDERS Jason Stern & Amara Projansky CEO Amara Projansky aprojansky@chronogram.com CHAIRPERSON David Dell
media specialists Kelin Long-Gaye k.long-gaye@chronogram.com Kris Schneider kschneider@chronogram.com Jen Powlison jen.powlison@chronogram.com SENIOR SALES MANAGER Lisa Montanaro lmontanaro@chronogram.com
marketing DIRECTOR OF CREATIVE PARTNERSHIPS Samantha Liotta sliotta@chronogram.com
interns EDITORIAL Cerissa DiValentino, Nikki Donohue, Abby Foster MARKETING & SALES Theresa Marzullo, Igor Ramirez
A TIMELESS SUMMER ESCAPE AT THE HUDSON VALLEY’S MOST ICONIC RESORT An unforgettable escape to nature is our specialty— for more than 150 years. And this year, we are taking every precaution to keep our employees and guests safe, while still maintaining your ability to have a true Mohonk vacation complete with delicious food, outdoor adventures, and of course— relaxation on the mountaintop.
SOCIAL MEDIA Sierra Flach
administration BUSINESS MANAGER
CHRONOGRAMMIES FIRST PLACE WINNER HOTEL, RESORT, & SPA
Molly Sterrs office@chronogram.com; (845) 334-8600x107
production PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Kerry Tinger ktinger@chronogram.com; (845) 334-8600x108
Schedule a tee time for a round of golf or plan an overnight staycation.
PRODUCTION DESIGNERS Kate Brodowska kbrodowska@chronogram.com Amy Dooley adooley@chronogram.com
office 45 Pine Grove Ave., Kingston, NY 12401 • (845) 334-8600; fax (845) 334-8610
mission
844.859.6716 | mohonk.com | New Paltz, NY
Chronogram is a regional magazine dedicated to stimulating and supporting the creative and cultural life of the Hudson Valley. All contents © Chronogram Media 2020. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM 7
esteemed reader
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT IN THE 2020 CHRONOGRAMMIES!
by Jason Stern
FIRST ANNUAL THE
THIRD PLACE
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Q: How much “ego” do you need? A: Just enough so that you don’t step in front of a bus. —Shunryu Suzuki Esteemed Reader of Our Magazine: s many readers have pointed out, we are in a time of transition, faced with the results of past deeds whose waves have rippled across the ocean of time, bounced off a distant shore, and returned in equal force. This is a peak in the intensity of our collective life together, a time that stirs conscience, and we awaken, if only a little, to some of the absurdities and injustices of our collective life as a society, and perhaps individually as well. Collective and personal histories are characterized by these peaks and troughs, like the waves. Life follows cycles, though our great difficulty is in remembering the trough at the height of the peak. How easily we forget the challenges of an intense period and become complacent during times of habit-impelled ease. This is the essence of meditation—to be both present in, and impartial to, the state of the moment. Whether I’m feeling good, up, strong, shitty, depressed, or ineffectual, the task of meditation is to stay with the technique as a gateway to a capacity for clear and impartial awareness. Technique, in meditation, is like the long, heavy keel of a sailboat, holding the vessel upright and providing stability as it cuts across the waves. As in meditation, so in life. How do I allow myself the freedom to stay present, alert, and aware? How do I stay whole whilst receiving what comes: the buffeting of injustices, shocking events, divided politics and opinions, the many wrongs of a society founded in ignorance? How do I keep a sense of the long body, recognizing the cyclical nature of a society with its ups and downs? How can I recognize and remember how reliably things become their opposite while retaining the same name? In my personal inquiry into the cyclical nature of time, I revisited some journals from seven years ago. I found a passage that jumped out as instructive for this particular time. It is a record of a conversation with my son, then six years old. The context is a walk along a country road on a warm night in June. Look, dad, fireflies! Yes, Ezra, beautiful. Everything has meaning, dad. Yes, everything has meaning… Ezra, what do you mean “everything has meaning”? It’s too much to say in words, dad. I recall the beauty of the evening, the pleasure of walking in the darkness with my son, seeing a large concentration of fireflies blinking and tracing over a hayfield. I recall the impact of his insight, and how there was nothing to say for a long time afterward. On a recent June evening, I again saw fireflies over the same field, and a possible meaning came to me. Despite Ezra’s admonition that it’s too much to say in words, I will try. The fireflies are like my presence. I blink on and off. Sometimes I am here and more often I am simply not here. Instead, I get lost in fantasies and fixations about past and future events, my opinions, and resentments. But occasionally I remember myself. When I wake up, I come into contact with a more immediate world. The world I wake up into is the world where I see, and I am aware that I am seeing. This is the world where, like Ezra said, everything has meaning. In this world of being awake, I see that all beings are equally precious and part of the larger body of life. I let the perception of a tree, or a sunset, or a cat, or the human being in front of me touch me, and I recognize the presence of something deeper behind the names and preconceptions that overlay appearance. When I am awake, I understand what things have been and what they may become, and how past, present, and future are simultaneous. This presence in a more substantial and sensitive world blinks on and off like the fireflies. Sometimes there is a dot, sometimes a long arc of presence, like firefly Morse Code. And sometimes there is a long arc in which I stay with myself for a duration I experience as profoundly long. Contact with this finer world, which interpenetrates the world of objects and appearances and politics, is the ballast that can hold the vessel upright. It is here that we have, both collectively and individually, the chance to make a change that is not just reactive but may actually transform. —Jason Stern
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Better times are coming – if we make them Things you can do to help... 1. For fifty years, Family of Woodstock has been housing, feeding, and serving our brothers and sisters in need in Ulster County. The demand for their services has exploded exponentially: familyofwoodstockinc.org 2. If you’re lucky enough to be on dry land financially, spend locally and lavishly like you’ve never done before. 3. The June issue of Chronogram offered some of the best coverage of “The Pandemic” in any format and from any source. You can subscribe to them for home delivery. A $36-a-year vote of confidence for people who are watching your back. chronogrammedia.com/delivery 4. Buy and read the book “Virus Mania” (2007) by Claus Kohnlein MD and Torsten Engelbrecht. We can no longer afford to leave issues of health up to mass media reporting and other unreliable sources. — Ken McCarthy
Write me to learn how you can support this message and others like it ken@kenmccarthy.com A DVE R TIS E ME NT
7/20 CHRONOGRAM 9
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editor’s note
by Brian K. Mahoney
Comforting Myths “The Black revolution is much more than a struggle for the rights of Negroes. It is forcing America to face all its interrelated flaws— racism, poverty, militarism, and materialism. It is exposing evils that are rooted deeply in the whole structure of our society. It reveals systemic rather than superficial flaws and suggests that radical reconstruction of society itself is the real issue to be faced. It is time that we stopped our blithe lip service to the guarantees of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. These fine sentiments are embodied in the Declaration of Independence, but that document was always a declaration of intent rather than reality. There were slaves when it was written; there were still slaves when it was adopted; and to this day, Black Americans have not life, liberty, nor the privilege of pursuing happiness, and millions of poor white Americans are in economic bondage that is scarcely less oppressive. Americans who genuinely treasure our national ideals, who know they are still elusive dreams for all too many, should welcome the stirring of Negro demands. They are shattering the complacency that allowed a multitude of social evils to accumulate. Negro agitation is requiring America to reexamine its comforting myths and may yet catalyze the drastic reforms that will save us from social catastrophe.” —Martin Luther King, Jr., 1967
T
here aren’t the right words in English to simply and adequately describe what the last few months have been like. Let’s begin with this word: grueling. It’s been a grueling few months. Here at Chronogram, while we were halfway through putting the April issue together, New York shut down. Stories that we had been planning for months became instantly irrelevant. We pivoted. At The River, we went into 24/7 coronavirus mode, publishing daily reports on the tide of the pandemic as it quickly swept across the region, and reporting on its ancillary effects on everything from food and hospitality to health care. In the pages of Chronogram and on Chronogram.com, we covered the evolving economic devastation, telling the stories of businesses shifting their businesses models overnight to comply with government health mandates; and we reported on the resilience of our communities, how mutual aid groups sprang up like mushrooms to assist our most vulnerable neighbors. While we were busy shifting our coverage to confront the “new normal” of the pandemic, Breonna Taylor was in a funeral home.
The 26-year-old EMT was shot eight times by plainclothes police officers executing a noknock warrant on March 13. Taylor was the latest Black person killed by cops in a string of racist police violence that predates the founding of the republic. (As Jon Stewart, still one of our most astute political commentators, noted in a recent interview with the New York Times magazine, police are not separate from society; they embody its values. “[The police] are not a rogue alien organization that came down to torment the Black community,” Stewart says. “They’re enforcing segregation. Segregation is legally over, but it never ended. The police are, in some respects, a border patrol, and they patrol the border between the two Americas.”) As the spread of the coronavirus swallowed the country in March, it also swallowed the story of Breonna Taylor’s killing and the subsequent stonewalling of the Taylor family by the Louisville Police Department. It seemed that Taylor’s killing would just be added to a list of names of Black people killed via state-sanctioned violence—Tamir Rice, Philando Castile, Walter Scott, the names stretch on and on—and little else would come of it. The intractable problem of institutionalized racism in this country would forever remain beyond hope of redress and murdered citizens would be tragic statistics. By early April, we had really settled (un) comfortably into the pandemic. Ennui became as much a source of anxiety as fear of contagion was. But like many others, we grokked the unparalleled disruption caused by the pandemic, welcoming the opening it made for challenging the dominant paradigm. The world was cracking open, and once-sacred shibboleths were looking as shaky as pizza in an earthquake. There seemed a chance that this crack in the facade of normality might give way to a new reality. So we began working on an expansive special feature for the July issue. It would focus on innovative thinking in wide-ranging topics: food and farming, the environment, the economy, education, and wellness. The fruit of that particular effort, The Future Is Now: Toward a Better New Normal, begins on page 12. It contains some radical thinking about real solutions (much of which would be easily accomplished) to some of the structural flaws in society, from universal basic income (page 19) to reconceiving public space (page 36) to radical divestment from Wall Street and reinvestment in our Main Streets (page 21). As Cordelia Schiller optimistically reports (“Fossil Fuels on the Brink,” page 38): “The uncertainty
of the present moment destroys both our limited notions of what is possible and our illusions of powerlessness.” As were in the midst of working on the July issue, envisioning what a reimagined future might look like, George Floyd was murdered. The world cracked open again. People across the planet poured into the streets—coronavirus be damned—calling for justice, demanding change, expressing rage and grief. As if a dam that had been building up pressure for hundreds of years had finally broken open. But the pressure was not released, just redirected. A reckoning with the consequences of slavery, our country’s original sin, was (possibly) at hand. (The mostly white jury is still out on this point; we shall see where this national conversation leads.) And I saw that the topic of racial justice was not on the list of coverage areas in The Future Is Now. Reason being: before the events of this past month, the massive pushback of citizens against state violence toward Black Americans, I couldn’t envision a future without systemic racism. Its stain was too deep in the bones of America. There is no adequate defense of this cynical lack of imagination and accepting of the status quo. Like most white people, I have had to acknowledge that I have not done enough to fight racism and not worked nearly hard enough for the “radical reconstruction of society” (Dr. King) because I am too comfortable. This extends to Chronogram Media as well. And we know we need to change. We’ve started with the July issue, which includes 10 pages on racial justice, featuring the work of many BIPOC writers and photographers. This was by design, and a small, first step in diversifying our organization. We are now engaged in a process that will center racial equity and anti-racist principles into our mission and practices, and will put in place commitments and systems of accountability to those principles. We are at the very beginning. The last few months have been a global wake-up call. The coronavirus pandemic and the overdue acknowledgement of systemic racism in our society have led us to question many of our basic assumptions about what we value in our economic and social relations and what we’re willing to do see those values borne out in ourselves and our institutions. There is so much work to be done. But it’s past time, and the future is now.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM 11
NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW
The Future Is Now
12 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Toward A Better New Normal Produced in collaboration with The River Newsroom & Sustainable Hudson Valley
I
n the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the US lost more lives than in the entire Vietnam War. Unemployment rose from four percent in February to 14 percent in April, with more people out of work in the US than in the Great Depression. The coronavirus, and the massive response needed to combat it, have brought unparalleled disruption. While the public health crisis is far from resolved, that black swan event has been followed by another explosion, one that should not have been a surprise: the outpouring of protest in response to the murder of George Floyd and the rapid mainstreaming of the Black Lives Matter movement. This turbulence plays out against the backdrop of a climate crisis that is already stressing ecosystems and communities. COVID itself is a sign of ecosystem imbalance. The climate crisis has been evoking unprecedented creative response and leadership. New York is one of 23 states declaring “We’re still in” on the Paris agreement. Climate strategist Bill McKibben recently observed that the political dominance of the fossil fuel industry is beginning to wane, while Bloomberg reported that ExxonMobil, for decades one the most profitable multinational corporations, has seen its share price fall for the past 10 years and its overall value is now less than that of Home Depot. Major investors and money managers, and leading fund managers such as BlackRock, are applying climate criteria to their investment decisions at a new scale. Bard College economists Eban Goodstein and Hunter Lovins argue further that the sharp drops in price for solar power and energy storage are leading quickly into an era of “solar dominance.” Amid the suffering and chaos, we are beginning to see a sense of unity, and a unique opportunity. As we reopen, our communities, workplaces, and institutions are grappling with critical questions. How to rearrange public spaces to ensure safety while restoring social interaction and advancing social justice? How to invest in economic recovery that benefits communities and restores the environment around us? How to respond to the urgent call to action for racial justice? If these responses can be aligned with climate action to speed the shift to a renewable and regenerative economy, we will be able to create a “virtuous cycle” of self-reinforcing positive change.
Many of us have experienced the pandemic in a hyper-local manner, with restricted mobility and social interaction, while watching the global dynamics via media. It is useful to realize the truly global nature of both the crisis and the exploration of breakthrough possibilities. The International Energy Agency (IEA) has put forward its own “sustainable recovery plan” for accelerating the shift to renewables, investing in clean transportation, and more. Its economic analysis, done in partnership with the International Monetary Fund, shows that such a plan can save or create nine million jobs worldwide. IEA is pushing that plan with national governments. It is time to think big. Chronogram and the The River Newsroom have joined forces with Sustainable Hudson Valley to look more deeply at the opportunities before us and what it will take to capture them. This special section considers six interrelated themes: health, economy, food and agriculture, public space, education, and racial justice. We have asked a wide range of strategic thinkers to tackle a series of questions: • What’s the disruption? • What’s the opportunity it presents? • What will it take to capture the opportunity, and who will need to be involved? We present these ideas to spark action, and we invite you to consider the possibilities. Business as usual is no longer an option. Our habit structures have been disrupted. After a period of shock, the logistical capabilities of our communities and institutions have been mobilized, and so has largescale activism. Through the mass shifts toward remote work, virtual education, and telemedicine, large numbers of people have gained new comfort levels with technology and new access to empowering resources (while others are left behind without access to reliable internet connectivity). We have just seen a national experiment with universal basic income. Economic recovery funding is flowing into our communities. If not now, when? —Melissa Everett
Melissa Everett is executive director of Sustainable Hudson Valley. Learn more at Sustainhv.org.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 13
food
THE FUTURE OF FOOD AND FARMS TOWARD A SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM By Max Kutner
T
wice a week, Tyler Dennis would load up his Dodge truck with carrots, squash, lettuce, and tomatoes and drive to the Union Square Greenmarket in New York City. Dennis, the owner of Alewife Farm in Clinton Corners, relied on restaurants, including those that shopped at the market, for around two-thirds of his business. Then COVID-19 hit and restaurants closed. “We definitely went through a period of a sharp drop in revenue,” he says. “It was a shock to the system initially. I was definitely in a real cash crunch for a while.” It was only when Dennis pivoted to new methods of distribution—including contributing to produce boxes that Lola Pizza in Kingston sold, and selling to customers directly at his farm—that his sales rebounded. In nearby Kingston, community members found themselves without enough to eat, especially families with children who relied on school meals. Local organizers set up the Kingston Emergency Food Collaborative, paying restaurants that were otherwise closed to cook meals, and then delivering the meals to people who requested them. The effort was affiliated with an even larger one by Ulster County, Project Resilience, which has served well over 100,000 meals since officials announced it on March 17. As these scenarios have played out across the Hudson Valley and the country, not everyone has been as fortunate as Dennis or the people who received meals. Farmers have scrambled to find new ways to distribute their food and community members have had to find new ways to get it. Hudson Valley food banks have reported surges in requests for help. NY FarmNet, a farmerassistance service located at Cornell University in Ithaca, received around twice as many calls in March as usual. Problems with the food system disproportionately impact people of color, an issue that has garnered renewed attention as the country confronts systemic racism and police killings of black people. Thought leaders in food justice, environmental justice, land access, and farm worker advocacy say now is a time to use the disruption to food systems to envision new ones—and to start putting those new systems in place. “COVID really was that catalyst in some ways to cast a light on the cracks in our system, so there’s this illumination,” says Stephanie Morningstar, coordinator of the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust, which has members in the Hudson Valley. “Before this, there was already a crisis happening.” 14 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
“OUR WHOLE FOOD SYSTEM IS ESSENTIALLY KEPT MOVING PRIMARILY BY PEOPLE OF COLOR IN THIS COUNTRY WHO THEMSELVES THEN EXPERIENCE FOOD INSECURITY.” —LARISA JACOBSON, CODIRECTOR OF SOUL FIRE FARM
Envisioning a New System What would a new food system look like? For one thing, it must address food access, according to Steve Rosenberg, senior vice president of Scenic Hudson, an environmental organization, and executive director of the Scenic Hudson Land Trust. The organization counted more than 5,000 farms in the Hudson Valley region, and it is pushing for policies that would make it easier for people in cities to access food from those farms. “What COVID has exposed is the challenge of getting fresh, healthy food to the people who need it most,” Rosenberg says. “There is no policy support system to get food into those communities.” New policies would support farmers so that they could better distribute food locally, and also create ways for cities to more efficiently get that food instead of turning to suppliers farther away. This new infrastructure would also be more environmentally sustainable, as the farmers would use practices that promote soil health and climate resiliency. Scenic Hudson has already tried to bridge the gap between farms and communities lacking in food access. The organization helped develop urban farm plots in Poughkeepsie and Newburgh. “People are seeing this as potentially something we’ll look back on as a real watershed moment,” Rosenberg says. “This moment may present the last best chance to make some significant moves to address these very issues.”
Some food justice advocates believe that the farms themselves need reforming, especially when it comes to who is farming. They point out that a century ago, 14 percent of farmers in the United States were black, and now only around one percent are. Soul Fire Farm in Petersburg, 30 miles east of Albany, wants to fix this. “It’s about reclaiming our own history,” says Larisa Jacobson, codirector and partnerships director at the farm, which has fruits, vegetables, sheep, pigs, and chickens, and hosts training programs. “These great oppressions and violences were wrought upon black and brown people on the land. In essence, this, along with forced migration to urban areas because of racialized violence, severed many of us from our agrarian histories.” Jacobson describes a food system based on stolen land and stolen labor. “Our whole food system,” Jacobson says, “is essentially kept moving primarily by people of color in this country who themselves then experience food insecurity.” According to the US Department of Agriculture, almost a quarter of black households are food insecure, nearly double the national average. During the pandemic, Soul Fire Farm has hosted webinars and delivered food to local families in need. It is also providing families in Troy and Albany with materials, tools, seeds, and seedlings to start their own gardens. But Jacobson and the other farmers are also thinking about longer-term ways to create a more equitable food system. Jacobson says this would mean connecting farmers of color with land, funding, and culturally relevant technical assistance, and for institutions to prioritize buying from farmers of color. A main obstacle for farmers of color is land access. “Almost 100 percent of the farmland in the Northeast is owned by white folks, and that has everything to do with systemic racism and discrimination,” says Morningstar, from the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust. “At every step of the way, land has been used as a tool and a resource to keep us marginalized and oppressed.” The Land Trust seeks a redistribution of land to farmers of color. “What we’re calling for is a redistribution of the wealth that was taken from us,” Morningstar says. “We need to reframe what wealth looks like, we need to reframe what resources look like, we need to start looking at land as not just a resource, but as a being that needs just as much love and attention as any other being.” A new food system should involve equitable access to land, resources, markets, and training.
A gathering at Soul Fire Farm, a BIPOC-centered community farm committed to ending racism and injustice in the food system. Photo: Soul Fire Farm
Christine Hutchinson experienced the landaccess problem firsthand. The Newburgh high school teacher started a poultry farm around a decade ago. She had no land or money for it, so she asked strangers if she could use their land, and a former farmer agreed. Her operation expanded to 300 chickens, ducks, and turkeys. But using someone else’s land and sharing it with other people was difficult. “Things were happening to my birds, eggs, and belongings,” she says. So she left, and when she bought her own small plot in Newburgh, she learned it was zoned for certain animals, but not chickens. She decided to close her farm. “Land access was a major problem. And this is coming from a person who does work another job and makes a decent salary and was able to productively raise poultry at a profit of sorts. I could not afford to buy land to farm,” says Hutchinson, who is on the board of the Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust and is director of Our Core, in Newburgh, which runs youth programs. Hutchinson says this was because of race: “It’s a matter of who you know and your connections and where they are, and our folks are not on land.” Advances for farmers of color, according to advocates, must also help farm workers, 80 percent of whom identify as Latino/Hispanic. “Our food system,” says Emma Kreyche, advocacy director at the Worker Justice Center of New York, a Hudson Valley-based nonprofit that provides legal assistance to farm workers and immigrant workers, “relies on the existence of a low-wage and, frankly, vulnerable workforce. Farm workers are not just poorly compensated; they are underprotected and they are generally
vulnerable because of immigration status issues.” Fixing this would mean radically changing the relationship between agriculture and labor, according to Kreyche. The lack of protections has likely contributed to coronavirus outbreaks among farm workers. New York state has issued guidance for protecting these workers during the pandemic, but it consists primarily of recommendations, not requirements. As of early May, the biggest outbreak in the state had been at Green Empire Farms in Oneida, where more than half of the 340 workers tested positive for COVID-19. “These are the people that we have deemed ‘essential,’ but we are treating them as if they’re disposable,” Kreyche says. Normal’s Not Working In a Philadelphia bookstore that temporarily closed due to the pandemic, Nate Kleinman spends his time packaging seeds and mailing them to some 200 “seed hubs” around the country. The operation involves hundreds of people. “The food system has been broken for a long time,” says Kleinman, a farmer and activist. “This moment presents an opportunity to develop more local food economies that are at a smaller scale, where it’s easier to truly be sustainable. And we need people to become less reliant on these far-flung, often global, supply chains.” In March, the nonprofit Kleinman cofounded, the Experimental Farm Network, launched the Cooperative Gardens Commission, a collective to help people grow their own food. Kleinman estimates that they have since distributed millions of seeds. “I really
had no concept of how big this was going to get,” he says. “We’ve been pretty overwhelmed by the response to it.” The effort is a response to COVID-19, but it is also a way to change the food system, and one that can outlast the disease. One person involved in Kleinman’s effort is Ken Greene, who with his partner, Doug Muller, started the Hudson Valley Seed Company, in Accord, and is director of Seedshed, which promotes seed stewardship. He believes that seeds can address lots of interconnected issues. “Seeds are the foundation of our food system, and we don’t think about them. We don’t know where they come from,” he says. “We have given up all of that control to a larger corporate food system.” People can regain control by starting gardens or supporting existing ones. “Seed literacy is a big piece of creating accountability,” he says. This leads to “seed sovereignty,” that is, for people to have self-determination over who grows their seeds and how they grow them. When it comes to food, no one should be counting down to a return to normal. “Normal wasn’t working,” Greene says. “This duality that we’re experiencing now with two crises, the COVID crisis and the current anti-racism work that people need to engage in, are both showing us that the food system was not working for everybody.” Greene adds, “It was not working when you start to dig back and go deeper than just the food that’s in front of you on your plate.” Vassar alum Max Kutner is a journalist in New York City and has written for Newsweek, the Boston Globe, and Smithsonian. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 15
the
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"...A Love Letter to Farmers and Food...a timely contribution and
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_ LISA GREEN, RURAL INTELLIGENCE
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with CHEF BRIAN ALBERG
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1202 ROUTE 55 LAGRANGEVILLE , NY 12540
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CELEBRATING 25 YEARS
Voted Best Indian Cuisine in the Hudson Valley
Red Hook Curry House ★★★★ DINING Daily Freeman & Poughkeepsie Journal ZAGAT RATED
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Sitting on one of the most breathtaking overlooks in the Hudson Valley, Benmarl’s 37-acre estate lays claim to one of the oldest vineyard in America. Our history runs deep, but so does our commitment to making consistent, quality, hand-crafted wines.
of Full Line uts ld C o C ic n a Org e Cooking and Hom ssen Delicate
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16 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Custom Cut • Home Cooking Delicatessen Nitrate-Free Bacon • Pork Roasts • Beef Roasts Bone-in or Boneless Ham: smoked or fresh Local Organic Beef • Exotic Meats (Venison, Buffalo, Ostrich) • Wild Fish
food
CONTAINER-TO-TABLE
VERTICAL FARMING IN POUGHKEEPSIE By Abby Foster
J
In March, John Lekic (above right), chef/owner of Farmers and Chefs in Poughkeepsie, purchased a shipping container growing system from Israeli smart farming company Vertical Fields that allows him to grow produce on the walls of the container.
ohn Lekic’s Farmers & Chefs brand has always been about showcasing the freshest produce of the region through his food trucks and brick-and-mortar restaurant. In recent months, the Poughkeepsie business›s name has become one step more literal. Amid pandemicdriven concerns about food safety, Lekic decided to start growing his own vegetables and herbs to cut down on the number of hands that handle ingredients before they reach diners. “It does set your mind at ease when you have control over your own food supply,” Lekic says. Short on space in the small parking lot behind the Farmers and Chefs building, which already holds the two food trucks, it occurred to Lekic that the only way to grow was up. So in March Lekic purchased a shipping container growing system from Israeli smart farming company, Vertical Fields, that would allow him to grow produce on the walls of the container. The cutting-edge agricultural technology that is used to cultivate gardens on the sides of skyscrapers now powers the 20-foot container that is growing produce in the restaurant’s parking lot. Each of the long walls is divided into two, for a total of four “fields,” which each offer approximately 85 square feet of growing space. These sections could split even further for a total of eight different “fields” if needed. “It gives you the freedom to harvest, if you wanted to, four or five times a week,” says Lekic. The vertical garden is climate controlled to allow for year-round growing, and everything from the 16-hour light cycle to when the plants get watered is automated. According to Vertical Fields, their technology requires 90 percent less water than traditional farming methods and grows produce with a longer shelf life, with no pesticide use required. The availability of fresh greens and herbs is something of a luxury in upstate winters, and even now, as we approach summer, supply shocks caused by COVID-19 continue to disrupt produce availability in the US. “We have two food trucks and a 300-seat restaurant, and based on what we used last year, we can supply all our needs based [with the vertical gardens],” Lekic says. Currently, he is growing kale, buttercrunch lettuce, thyme, arugula, dill, and sage for salads, garnishes, and even their herb-infused ice cream, with hopes of getting a second container exclusively for mushrooms in the future. “We want to expand. You know, once you start farming like this, it inspires you,” he says. Some of the greens that Lekic grows, like kale, are ready to harvest approximately two weeks after planting. “To a chef, it’s just incredible, because you can grow your produce, and then harvest it and serve it on the same day,” he says. Abby Foster is a recent graduate of SUNY New Paltz. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 17
economy
PAUSE, PIVOT, REIMAGINE By Melissa Everett
T
he current economic collapse is like no other. In a few short months, over 20 million people have lost their jobs while over a million have gotten sick with coronavirus and many more have been under virtual lockdown to fight the virus. The crisis and response have revealed structural problems in the economy, including an inadequate supply chain and limited planning capacity for essential supplies. Because entire industries are reeling, from hospitality and tourism to commercial real estate, many people will need to reorient their careers while coping with the trauma of the situation. Business leaders and economic development practitioners are waking up quickly to the levels of adaptiveness and resourcefulness that will be needed to restore economic health and reshape the system for greater resilience. Michael Oates, president of the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation, cites one example: commercial real estate. “There has been an enormous disruption in the real estate market with so many people working at home successfully. How do we reposition empty commercial properties for creative uses? It may be incubating spaces, shared work, and things that will allow us to be more creative. How can we foster more entrepreneurship, especially in minority communities? Can we take these interconnected crises and come up with solutions that increase the diversity of opportunity?” The art of the pivot was a theme in business leadership well before COVID-19. In April, IDEO, a collaboration platform, announced the COVID-19 Business Pivot Challenge to learn how businesses were using this crisis to redirect their efforts into areas of new opportunity to serve. In three weeks, 29,000 people visited their website. Six hundred and ninety-nine project ideas were submitted, representing 36 industries and 71 countries, and 73 percent were from small business. For example,
• ORamaVR is a technology startup that created a virtual approach to accelerated COVID-19 medical training in partnership with NYU Medical Center. • NODE, a sustainable home construction business, pivoted to produce treatment and quarantine centers that can be repurposed for affordable housing. That kind of inventiveness is visible throughout the region, in the distilleries that shifted to producing sanitizer and the farm businesses that changed their production plans to address local hunger. It even shows up in the 18 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 6/20
use of novel economic tools like the alternative currency developed for our region, the Hudson Valley Current. Participants (anyone) can use this tool as a medium of exchange at participating businesses within the region—but not beyond— keeping the wealth local. The Current team made a major pivot in the crisis to create a community food and resilience marketplace which will continue in the new normal. But creative business efforts won’t be sufficient without positive policies. While renewable energy has been a main focus of discussions of a Green New Deal and future stimulus funding, that is not the only major job creator. New York Sustainable Business Council Executive Director Bob Rossi observes that “water is the backbone of our economy. So much depends on it—tourism and recreation, food and beverage, and the health of our communities. When water is polluted, people get sick and businesses have to invest more in purification technologies. Investing in water infrastructure is a job creator that pays back richly.” But the complexity and sudden onset of the crisis reveals more complex issues in the economy. Dennis Meadows, coauthor of Limits to Growth, observes in a recent post that industry’s drive to greater and greater efficiency can actually undercut resilience by reducing resource reserves and organizations’ capacity to buffer against stress. “Over the past century, there has been wholesale abandonment of resilient systems in favor of efficient systems—larger scale, less diversity, lower redundancy.” Health care is one example. “There has been a relentless effort to reduce personnel levels, eliminate ‘unnecessary’ stocks of supplies, and shift drug production overseas—all to reduce costs, i.e., make the system more efficient,” Meadows writes. “Many have profited by optimizing the health system to be extremely efficient in its use of inputs. Now we all are paying the costs for the resultant loss of resilience. COVID-19 has shown how quickly interrupting some inputs, such as masks, can cause drastic declines in essential outputs, such as the quality of health care.” Fortunately, there is interest in more systemic approaches. A private sector coalition, led by the American Sustainable Business Council, has issued policy recommendations to guide recovery. They can be boiled down to four themes: 1. Stop investing in polluting and resource depleting technologies and fully embrace renewable ones; 2. Focus job creation efforts on solving entrenched problems and inequities, and building
resource capacity (like water infrastructure, soil health, broadband); 3. Target recovery money and non-monetary supports to small and locally owned businesses, especially food businesses connected with solving food insecurity exacerbated by COVID; 4. Incentivize and reward businesses for retooling in a more sustainable direction. Oates reinforces this last point. “I think we will also see more resource-efficient and zerowaste businesses,” he says. “Developers are understanding that need. Now might be the time to follow through on ideas we’ve had for years but have not acted on. One thing COVID has exposed is our shortsightedness, which has cost us dearly.”
Business Profile
Singularity Botanicals Singularity Botanicals is an African-American owned business producing medicinal plants and multifaceted training programs in their cultivation and use. It was launched in Chester, Pennsylvania, described by founder Pamela Boyce Simms as “a small city with grit, heart and indomitable spirit that has also been a toxic dumping ground for the Mid-Atlantic region for decades.” The project has developed a network of growing sites in urban church and school yards, as well as rural sites in the Hudson Valley, where Boyce Simms has lived and calls home. Facing the host of environmental and social inequities in their midst, including health care disparities and climate change, the founding group set about taking control of their health, economics and consciousness with a unified strategy. They noticed the ivy and burdock, plants with purifying value in traditional Chinese medicine, grew abundantly on the outskirts of the city. In 2019, they created the business that helps residents “re-skill” as herb cultivators while promoting “selfcare sovereignty.” And they established a business model that is seamlessly connected with personal growth through a sociocratic form of governance. The business operates as a flexible subscription service for monthly bundles—tinctures, teas, exercises and practices, growing protocols for medicinal plants, daily meditations, and recipes. All revenues go toward distributing these goods and services to people who can’t afford them through a nonprofit arm, the African Diaspora Coalition. Hundreds of packages of respiratory detox and de-stress tinctures and teas have already been distributed to help Chester residents withstand the pandemic. When the pandemic hit, Singularity’s urban buildings in Chester were closed to workers. The organization pivoted to expand rural growing including a new site at Seed Song Farm in Kingston. Boyce Simms attributes their pivoting skill to the company’s cultural “emphasis on personal transformation as well as an adaptive business model.” —ME
economy
BASIC INCOME GUARANTEE
A UNIVERSAL BASIC INCOME PILOT IN HUDSON By Dalvin Aboagye
D
espite a downward trend in coronavirus cases in several states and a rush toward reopening, Americans are reeling from the economic damage dealt by the pandemic. Total unemployment claims continue to pile up and some experts predict the recession that officially began in February will be disastrous, outlasting the pandemic itself. With state coffers strapped for cash, the federal government stepped in to help with the CARES Act in March, which overhauled unemployment benefits nationwide and doled out direct relief checks to millions. While many are still waiting for their first relief check, politicians from both parties are calling for a second round of direct checks to citizens, and then some. But for the City of Hudson, the economic downturn presents the perfect litmus test for a new iteration of a radical concept with old roots. This September, the small community on the east bank of the Hudson River is set to join several other American cities that are home to a universal basic income pilot program. Twenty low-income residents in the city of over 6,700 will be given direct payments of $500 a month with no strings attached for the next five years via the HudsonUP program, a collaboration between the Spark of Hudson community center and former 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang’s nonprofit, Humanity Forward. Yang made universal basic income— essentially direct money transfers for all—a core tenet of his longshot presidential bid, touting it as a solution for widening income inequality and the growing automation in the workforce. But the idea was far from obscure. “Only the last few years is where it really seemed like a boom, because the Great Recession lasted for a really long time,” says Karl Widerquist, an economist and expert in UBI at Georgetown University’s Qatar campus. “Even when the economy was picking up, employment wasn’t and wages weren’t.” Even though versions of the concept have been tossed around for centuries, many credit 18th-century English writer and revolutionary Thomas Spence for formulating a basic income model in his 1797 text The Rights of Infants. Public interest in UBI tends to spike during times of great economic and social upheaval, such as the 1920s to `30s (Great Depression and World War II) and the late `60s to early `70s (Vietnam War and Civil Rights Movement), Widerquist adds. Now the third wave of support is brewing thanks to small-scale projects from private investors with ties to the tech industry who have the funds and optimism to try it out.
The Spark of Hudson founders Susan Danziger and Albert Wenger found themselves captivated by the concept after hearing their colleagues in the tech sector wax poetic about the ways it could improve the lives of many who are struggling financially. When COVID-19 made its way to Columbia County earlier this year, Danziger and Wenger launched a community wellness fund that dispensed $500 payments to 63 Hudson families trying to get by. “For instance, there was one woman whose car had just broken down so she couldn’t go to
“Their minds aren’t racing at night in the same ways,” says Sukhi Samra, the director of SEED. “They’re less stressed, they’re less anxious. They’re able to show up as better people—better spouses, better parents. That’s something that we’ve heard a lot.” Hudson Mayor Kamal Johnson is hopeful that the small injection of cash into his residents’ lives will have similar outcomes. His excitement for the program grew when the team at SEED shared its positive findings with him during the planning stages of the HudsonUP program. “I wanted to take chances, so when I
work,” Danziger explains. “This money paid to repair her car. Had we just given money for the food program, that wouldn’t have helped her.” Over the next half-decade, the couple will help the Greater Hudson Promise Neighborhood with logistics and tracking the long-term effects of the pilot UBI program. Past basic income experiments in larger cities like Stockton, California, have not only lessened the strain on people’s wallets, but also their minds. Since February of 2019, organizers at the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration (SEED) have kept track of the economic and emotional benefits that their $500 monthly payments have had on the 125 residents in the program. The additional money made headaches like car maintenance and staying on top of bills easier to deal with.
got this opportunity to work with this project, I was extremely excited,” Johnson says. For his constituents, almost a quarter of whom were living at or below the poverty line pre-COVID, the timing of it all couldn’t be better. The HudsonUP program is currently meeting with various institutional stakeholders in the city and will be hosting a series of town hall meetings with the public in the near future. By early fall, the selected participants will most likely receive payments through a combination of in-person and online banking options to better align with continued calls for social distancing. Dalvin Aboagye is a freelance writer who covers the Hudson Valley for the River Reporter and the River. 6/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 19
economy: essay
REMOTE WORK
A HOME-BASED CLIMATE SOLUTION By John Lyons
S
helter-in-place orders in response to the COVID-19 virus forced a dramatic increase in working remotely. Most estimates agree that more than 50 percent of workers have been working remotely during the pandemic. According to the Global Work from Home Experience Survey, working from home among white collar workers rose from 31 percent to 88 percent. Many recent articles have predicted that working remotely will continue long after the pandemic. Some employers would prefer this. Twitter, Facebook, and other large tech companies have told their employees they can work from home through the end of the year and possibly beyond. Most estimates indicate that more than 70 percent of employees would like the flexibility of working remotely for part of the week. When the pandemic struck, most businesses were not ready to switch to a remote workforce. Few of their Emergency Planning and Business Continuity Plans considered something like this. Tech companies and large well-resourced corporations had the easiest transition. Smaller businesses have shown less confidence. According to Frank Costello Jr. President & CEO of the Dutchess County Chamber of Commerce, a majority of panelists in a recent webinar on reopening said they did not plan significant increases in remote work beyond the crisis. The primary reasons given were questionable productivity and management challenges related to confidence and trust. Not all jobs can be done remotely, and not all employers are ready to manage a remote workforce. Still, this forced experiment has taught us a lot. More can be done remotely than most of us believed, and there are benefits as well as challenges. Each job type, each corporate culture, and every individual is different, which makes developing standardized guidelines and making a massive shift toward increased remote work challenging. Employees have expressed a clear preference (70 percent to 80 percent) to work from home, but even at Facebook only 20 percent indicated they wanted to do this full time. Employees believe that the ability to work from home on occasion improves their job satisfaction, work/ life balance, and productivity. Employee concerns include isolation, lack of collaboration and career advancement. Employers also see benefits: business continuity, reduced operating costs, increased productivity, happier employees, and 20 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
ACCORDING TO THE US ENERGY INFROMATION ADMINISTRATION, THE TRANSPORTATION SECTOR ACCOUNTED FOR 47 PERCENT OF NEW YORK’S CO2 EMISSIONS FROM FOSSIL FUEL FROM 1980 TO 2017. UNLIKE MOST MEASURES TO REDUCE EMISSIONS, INCREASING REMOTE WORK CAN BEGIN TO PRODUCE RESULTS IMMEDIATELY WITH MODEST INVESTMENT. the ability to recruit and retain talent. Concerns for employers are productivity, difficulty managing a remote workforce, perceived loss of creativity and innovation, and difficulty measuring and tracking performance. If we can sustain the expansion in remote work wherever it makes sense, the benefits will extend beyond employers and employees. New York’s new Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), has challenged us with ambitious carbon reduction goals. According to the US Energy Information Administration the transportation sector accounted for 47 percent of New York’s CO2 emissions from fossil fuel from 1980 to 2017. Unlike most measures to reduce emissions, increasing remote work can begin to produce results immediately with modest investment. For many, this experience with remote work has been a first. For employers and employees alike, decisions were made. Mistakes happened. Still, habits were broken, new practices were learned, and the unknown became known. Getting people or corporations to change is hard. We cannot underestimate the opportunity now to make significant progress toward achieving the state’s carbon reduction goals while reducing congestion and pollution, increasing job satisfaction, productivity, and profitability by supporting the expansion of remote work. What actions need to be taken to make the most of the opportunity? Employers are the key. How do we help them transition?
• Assist in developing remote work policies and plans. Organizations with plans in place transitioned to shelter-in-place more successfully than those without.
• Incentivize or mandate employers in industries where remote work makes sense, to institute remote work programs that result in a targeted reduction of 25 percent of pre COVID-19 work commutes.
• Create a business-to-business mentor program, drawing on the experience of employers like IBM, MasterCard and many others that have had robust telework programs for decades. • Build an open access repository of resources such as best practices, policy, plan agreement templates, contacts for consultancy services and more. • Provide training for managing a remote workforce, including performance evaluation and other areas identified by employers.
COVID-19 has presented us with a tremendous opportunity to take advantage of this hard-earned experience to support and encourage remote working. The time is now to learn, refine, promote, and support remote working in New York. The time is now to leverage this experience. Carpe diem! John Lyons is a transportation professional, sustainability leader, solar entrepreneur, and business developer with passion to address the climate crisis and create a clean energy future.
economy: essay
FREE STIMULUS FOR THE HUDSON VALLEY INVEST IN YOUR HOMETOWN By Michael H. Shuman
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ocal governments of all sizes— counties, cities, towns, villages— are facing the challenge of restarting their economies with dwindling public resources. If the Hudson Valley is smart about it, the many jurisdictions can begin to spur unprecedented economic development at almost zero cost. The key is to invest in local resilience. A front-page headline of a recent issue of the Wall Street Journal proclaimed, “US cities, thriving before the pandemic, will need new economic plans.” This crisis has taught us that the fundamental premise of long-term economic well being is no longer to attract one or two “world class” global companies, but instead to create a diversity of locally owned businesses meeting basic local needs. Greater self-reliance in food, energy, and finance inoculates a community from future crop blights, oil cutoffs, or capital flights. That’s the essence of resilience. My latest book, Put Your Money Where Your Life Is, shows how the Hudson Valley’s more than two million residents can move their pension savings from Wall Street to Main Street. By using well-established but little-known tools like the Self-Directed IRA and Solo 401k, residents can easily begin investing their life savings in Hudson Valley people, projects, and businesses. Before the COVID-19 crisis, US households held $56 trillion in long-term investments in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, pension funds, and insurance funds. Even though local businesses account for 60-80 percent of the US economy, hardly a penny of this $56 trillion touched any local businesses whatsoever. In a healthy capital market, 60-80 precent of our savings would support 60-80 percent of our businesses—especially those businesses so closely tied to our community’s wellbeing. If we fixed our investment system, if we moved just 60 percent of $56 trillion from Wall Street to Main Street, every community would enjoy about $100,000 of additional capital per resident. A small town like Red Hook would have $1 billion to put into reviving its small businesses postCOVID. Poughkeepsie would have $3 billion, enough to reverse the decades of disinvestment that were triggered by foolish “free trade” agreements. The entire Hudson Valley would have $230 billion. And who needs perfection? If each of us with retirement savings commits to putting something into community renewal—10 percent, five percent, even just one percent—we can shift the course of history.
As my book shows, you can easily move your pension savings into local investments through two existing tax tools. The Self-Directed IRA enables you to direct a “custodian” to put your money into all kinds of local investments. For those who are self-employed, a Solo 401k enables you to do this from your own bank account. That said, there’s a role for public policy. Local governments around you need to redirect their economic-development policies to promoting local investing. They need to help struggling businesses learn about ways of raising local capital and help local investors (who are now 10 percent down in the stock market) learn the details about local investing. Self-Directed IRAs and Solo 401ks cost something—not a lot, but something—and like speed bumps, their fees slow down the local investment revolution. Suppose we could bring down those costs? Automation and competition are likely to do this anyway, and I predict that the cost of a Self-Directed IRA and Solo 401k will ultimately shrink to about $100 to $200 per year, maybe even less. But let’s go further and get rid of these costs altogether. One way to do this might be through a local investment tax credit. For every dollar you put into local investment, you might get some amount off on your taxes. Suppose you had a five percent local property tax credit. If you reinvested $10,000 of your DIY Account into local business, you would get a $500 credit—more than enough to cover your fees for a year. Better still, let’s apply the credit to the total amount of local investment you hold, so you can apply it year after year. (The state of Michigan recently introduced a bill to enact a 50 percent state tax credit like this.) What else should we ask local policymakers to do? You might kindly request they consider the following:
make it possible for grassroots investors to buy those bonds.
• Create a local land trust with both public and philanthropic funds that can buy up residential land for affordable housing and commercial land for affordable retail development. Allow grassroots investors to add capital as well. • Share with businesses innovative structures to provide their employees with self-direction options.
• Start economic-development funds that are run by the municipality but capitalized by grassroots investors (this is an exemption in the Investment Company Act that has yet to be exploited). Such pools might focus on food startups or affordable housing. They might help early stage entrepreneurs find funds to comply with early zoning and licensing fees. • Get the managers of the municipality’s public employee pension funds to start putting money into local investment options—perhaps into the municipal bonds or land trust loans mentioned above. They could provide their employees with local investment options. All these policies would cost something, but I challenge any economic developer to show another set of policies that can generate billions of dollars off economic growth at such a low cost. Skeptics should heed the immortal words of Sir Francis Bacon: “It would be an unsound fancy and self-contradictory to expect that things which have never yet been done can be done except by means which have never yet been tried.” Michael H. Shuman, a leading visionary on community economics, is the director of Local Economy Programs for Neighborhood Associates Corporation and an adjunct professor at Bard Business School in New York City.
• Move municipal banking into a local bank or credit union, as the cities of Phoenix and Tucson have done. This boosts local financial institutions and keeps more money recirculating at home.
• Provide a list of every local investment opportunity on a page of your county or town’s official website. This would just be for informational purposes, but it could help investors and businesses find one another for private deal-making. • Encourage your locality to issue municipal bonds for important local projects, like expanding local renewal energy capacity, and
7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 21
education
PANDEMIC PIVOT
SCHOOLS RETHINK LONG-HELD ASSUMPTIONS By Katie Navarra
E
ducation leaders are facing some of the most intense challenges since World War II and the Civil Rights Movement. The COVID-19 pandemic presented administrators, teachers, and staff with some of the most intense logistical challenges in decades. The protests following the killing of George Floyd have caused educators to reflect deeply on how institutionalized racism can be rooted out of the classroom. It is anyone’s guess what school will look like in the fall. Students may return to traditional classroom models. Or they may have rotating schedules to cut down on class sizes, or virtual classrooms may continue. Some education experts predict schools will have up to 15 different options for what school might look like. One thing is for certain—schools must use the circumstances to create teachable moments on critical environmental and social issues. Hudson Valley schools aren’t waiting to respond. They are working to build a better future for education in the region. Here, leaders from six schools in the region share anticipated changes and visions for change. Community Relationships Last fall, Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison and Superintendent Eric Rosser launched the Children’s Cabinet to develop a shared vision and cradle-to-career path for child growth in the city. The Cabinet’s executive committee includes leaders in higher education, philanthropy, hospitals, nonprofits, and other sectors. In early 2020, the city was invited to join the “By All Means” initiative created by the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Education Redesign Lab to support their grassroots effort to launch issue-specific and solutions-oriented working groups. When the pandemic hit, cabinet members stepped up to ensure students had needed resources. Nubian Directions II, Inc., provided free Wi-Fi access to high-need Poughkeepsie neighborhoods. The Poughkeepsie Public Library District loaned about 50 Wi-Fi hotspots and the cabinet has raised $62,000 to support the purchase of Chromebooks and internet access for students in need. “We had this ability to respond in a comprehensive and collaborative way to the crisis in many respects, especially as it related to the school system at a time of great stress,” Rolison says. A community approach is necessary to meet the needs of the whole child, according to Eric Rosser, superintendent of the Poughkeepsie City 22 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
School District. Children spend just 20 percent of each day in school with the other 80 percent within the community. “When the Mayor and I talk about our partnership, it is not about purely the Poughkeepsie City School District,” he said. “The partnership is about what can we do for children and parents of children.” The pandemic has also shown how schools can support their communities in crisis situations. The Homestead School, a farm-based Montessori school, in the Sullivan County hamlet of Glen Spey, responded to the needs of healthcare workers and first responders. Assistant School Head, Jack Comstock used 3D printers owned by the school to make shields for nurses. The school initially funded the materials. Additional support came from the Friends of the Homestead School and grants from the Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan. “We did not hesitate to start producing PPE,” he wrote in a letter to parents and community members. “We were able to produce over 2,000 shields with the help of school families, local school districts and other businesses.”
“LET’S START TO CREATE A NEW STORY FOR HOW WE CAN LIVE AND THRIVE AND EDUCATE OUR CHILDREN. THERE IS NO ROOM FOR THE LIMITING SCRIPTS AND PREPACKAGED EXPLANATIONS THAT COME WITH THE DOCTRINES THAT HAVE BEEN SOLD TO US. WHILE ELEMENTS OF WISDOM CAN STILL BE FOUND WITHIN THESE, THEY GROSSLY MISREPRESENT THE ACTUAL WORLD WE LIVE IN, THE REAL CRISES THAT WE FACE, AND CERTAINLY BLIND US TO A WAY FORWARD THAT MIGHT WORK FOR ALL OF US.” —PETER COMSTOCK, HOMESTEAD SCHOOL COFOUNDER
Eliminating the SAT The fairness of SAT scores in the college admissions process has been questioned for decades. Children from wealthy families have an advantage to perform better, and as a result, have more access to higher education, according to Leon Botstein, president of Bard College in Annandale-on-Husdon. “Studies have proven a direct correlation between wealth and scores,” Botstein says. “It’s important that these standardized tests be made obsolete,” he says. Bard is a half-century ahead of most colleges. The school quit requiring SAT scores 50 years ago. In April, Elizabeth H. Bradley, president of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, announced the school is waiving SAT and ACT score requirements for 2020–2021 applicants. The test-option policy has been discussed before the COVID-19 pandemic, but the disruption of the preparation and testing process spurred action. At the end of the admissions cycle, Vassar will decide if it becomes a permanent policy. “There are inherent inequalities in standardized testing that have long been recognized by educators,” says Sonya K. Smith, dean of admission and student financial services at Vassar. “We believe this new policy aligns us with our core value of access.” Independent colleges have the flexibility to make such changes. Over 1,200 colleges across the country have made the tests optional, including 85 percent of the top liberal arts colleges. Public schools like SUNY New Paltz are awaiting guidance from SUNY leadership, according to Melissa Kaczmarek the director of communication at SUNY New Paltz. Changing the Story The pandemic, the fragility of the environment, and the George Floyd protests have given education leaders an opportunity to change the stories told through curriculums and initiatives. Bard has developed five new courses ranging from the history of epidemics to fiction and nonfiction about utopian and dystopian dreams, civics, and others. As Rhinebeck School District Superintendent Joe Phelan prepares for retirement on July 1 after 21 years on the job, his mission is to promote environmentalism and climate education. After attending the Omega Institute’s 2019 Drawdown Learn Conference, he brought ideas back to the superintendents of Dutchess County’s 13 public school districts. “We need to teach kids about the environment and make environmentalism and climate change part of our curriculum starting in elementary school,” Phelan says. “It includes looking at the logistics of running a school and
Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison and Schools Superintendent Eric Rosser launched the Children’s Cabinet to develop a shared vision for a cradle-to-career path for the city’s children.
working with our students to transition them from environmental activism to environmental leadership, to do more than walk out of school on a Friday afternoon to protest.” At Rhinebeck, a current capital project includes converting all fluorescent lighting fixtures to LED. The new lighting creates financial savings, lessens the school’s environmental impact, and has benefited the school’s autism population. Individuals with autism tend to find fluorescent lighting to be particularly irritating and uncomfortable, and they find the LED lighting more comfortable, Phelan says. Changing the curriculum narrative must also include hard conversations about race, racism, and the way history is taught. SUNY New Paltz has one of the oldest Black Studies departments in the country, says Kaczmarek. In addition to a long-standing Scholars Mentorship Program, the college has implemented mandatory training on diversity and inclusion and cultural awareness for all faculty and staff, and the new student orientation program includes an introduction and overview to these topics. Homestead School cofounder Peter Comstock echoed that sentiment “Let’s start to create a new story for how we
can live and thrive and educate our children. There is no room for the limiting scripts and prepackaged explanations that come with the doctrines that have been sold to us,” Comstock wrote in a letter to parents and community members. “While elements of wisdom can still be found within these, they grossly misrepresent the actual world we live in, the real crises that we face, and certainly blind us to a way forward that might work for all of us.” Vassar’s Office of Student Growth & Engagement (SGE) has been intentional about not siloing diversity and inclusion, instead taking a more holistic approach. The college has countless resources, such as the ALANA Center, Office of International Services (OIS), the LGBTQ+ Center, the Posse Veterans Program, the Transitions Program, and the Women’s Center. “It’s also been critical that we create more ways for the campus as a whole to engage on topics of race, equity, and inclusion,” says Kevin Collins, Director of the ALANA Center. What Will Education Look Like? In the coming weeks, more information will emerge as to what school looks like in the fall. Technology will certainly be a part of it, but how much? Botstein believes it serves a critical
role, but that it can’t replace in-person learning “We’re going to have to face the fact that there’s no technological solution to the complexity of providing an education classroom,” he says. The reasons schools have been able to transition to virtual platforms this year is because the administrators, teachers, and students had an existing relationship, according to Botstein. That rapport could be continued online because they already knew one another. “The classroom has survived every technological innovation in the history of the world,” he said. “Education is going to survive this one too, to show that the old seminar room looks very much like what you’ll see after this pandemic is over.” In-person classrooms will survive, but will they look like 13th-century universities? Not at the Homestead School, where creative solutions for getting back to school have led to the purchase of nine tipis to provide more teaching space and encourage classroom ventilation. Despite all of the challenges, education has the chance to embrace innovative solutions for building a better future for all students. Katie Navarra is an award-winning writer who covers education, horses, farming, and business/leadership. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 23
racial justice: essay
HOW TO JOIN THE ANTIRACIST FUTURE IN THE HUDSON VALLEY By Stephanie Alinsug
I
n the last five years, over 1,200 Black people have died as a result of police shootings. I have a budget of 1,000 words for this essay. I considered listing all of the names of these victims in lieu of taking up space with my voice. I decided otherwise, but I want you to imagine each of these words as someone’s first name—the name of a living, breathing, loving, hurting human engaged in the same struggle for dignity as you and me. Take in the sight of these words on this paper—look at the words in physical space. Imagine them as names, as people. Watch them inevitably blur as the eye adjusts its focus. Imagine them. This is the Futures issue, aptly titled The Future is Now: Toward a Better New Normal. Before we prioritize our future, we must take a moment to honor all of the Black lives (men, women, trans, and non-binary) in our collective history, from today stretching back to 1619, when the first ship arrived from Africa carrying people stolen from their land—Black people enslaved for the sake of the white man’s capitalist pursuit. Honor all of the Black individuals who are not granted a future. Honor the Black community who is not actively afforded the possibility of envisioning a future—a better new normal—because every day is survival, and even still it is likely to include disenfranchisement, incarceration, and death. This is on us. There is no single radical policy platform that white people can support to heal the traumas that centuries of white supremacy have perpetrated on Black and non-Black people of color. There is no set of electeds you can call to “pass racial justice” in this country. There are no books you can check off your list that absolve previous and future complacency. There are no meetings you can attend, no organizations you can donate to that will bring the struggle for Black liberation to a grand denouement. Don’t misunderstand me: These are all good things to do, and you should do them. Yet they are not enough. •
My writing contains nothing new. adrienne maree brown reminds us that within structural and systemic supremacy, the Black community has been engaged in Black futures for all of eternity. In her essay “Afrofuturism and #BlackSpring,” from her book Emergent Strategy, brown writes: “To focus on afrofuturists in the Black social-justice tradition, I would note that: Africans leaping off of slaver ships were afrofuturists. Slave-era parents teaching their babies a foreign alphabet in the candlelit dirt were afrofuturists.” 24 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Black Lives Matter March on June 3, in Kingston. Photo: Stepanie Alinsug
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Black Lives Matter March on June 3 in Kingston. Photo: Stephanie Alinsug
brown’s essay contains so much wisdom. I read it like a prayer—a celebration of and commitment to Black liberation. Deep gratitude to adrienne maree brown for bringing her wisdom into this world and gifting it to us. • As a non-Black person of color, every day requires great effort to be seen and held as a full person within my dignity and my vulnerability, within my perfections and my imperfections. I have no choice but to fight for my physical and metaphysical safety, for my intellectual and emotional validity. This struggle manifests somatically within my body—mental health and the traumas of supremacy are deeply interconnected. Black and non-Black people of color don’t have the option to opt in or opt out of the violence, of the somatic manifestations of supremacist trauma. Acknowledging and listening to the sensations within our bodies is our survival. This knowing is held within our intergenerational trauma, and our intergenerational wisdom. I was not invited to have my voice in this magazine. I had to ask. (Again, the struggle to be seen.) This is not the first time I’ve asked—I’ve been asking for months, years. I pursued the traditional channels of the sacred editorial process—I sent clips to editors and decision makers and specifically called on the magazine to create a social justice vertical. Nothing came of my persistence. Now that I’m finally here, I’m tasked with articulating the uplifting opportunities that this moment of societal upheaval offers for change. Spoiler alert: This moment of societal upheaval 26 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 6/20
presents nothing new. White people are waking up to this struggle. The opportunities of this moment are within their bodies. White people must look deeply within themselves and acknowledge their bodies. They must face the shame and sit within the discomfort. It’s what Black and non-Black people of color do every day. It’s our survival. The opportunity lies within white people to embrace this somatic awareness as their survival, as if their lives depend on it—because Black lives depend on it. • Kazu Haga in Healing Resistance—a book that is part activist memoir, part philosophical exploration of Kingian nonviolence, and part practical guide to living nonviolence—writes this of the lifelong commitment to nonviolence, which we can easily substitute with the work of antiracism: “To change our defaults, we need to reprogram our responses to conflict, and that takes a while. It takes consistent training to change old habits and conditioning. It takes consistent training for something to become muscle memory.” Within the context of antiracism, engaging in conflict is a radical investment in ourselves, in our allies, in our community, and in the movement. Conflict is our antiracist practice, it’s our antiracist training. White people must turn toward shame, must listen to the pleas of Black and non-Black people of color. White people must engage in the conflict of antiracism. Again, adrienne maree brown in Emergent Strategy, quoting Octavia Butler: “We are touching the future, reaching out across boundaries and postapocalyptic conditions to touch each other, to call
each other out as family, as beloveds. ‘All that you touch, you change. All that you change, changes you.’ We are making ourselves vulnerable enough to be changed, which will of course change what Black existence means.” How do white people join the antiracist future in the Hudson Valley? By making themselves vulnerable to change. Let the voices of Black and non-Black people of color reach into your boundaries and hold you in conflict, in your accountability as family engaged in the struggle for Black futures. Stephanie Alinsug (she/they/siya) is a writer, organizer, and facilitator, and centers BIPOC healing in their work for liberation. Stephaniealinsug.com
racial justice: essay
WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN? THE REPEAL OF 50-A AND BEYOND By beetle bailey
“BUT WHO WILL GUARD THE GUARDIANS THEMSELVES?”
C
—JUVENAL
ases of police abuse and misconduct in Kingston have seldom been followed by disciplinary action or retraining. Notably: In November 2017, a 16-year-old girl was physically and sexually assaulted by a Kingston police officer working as a student resource officer at Kingston High School. The involved parties and the community were told by the school district that unless the Police Commission said an officer did something wrong, they—the victims, families, and community—could not request the removal of that officer from the school. Information was withheld from the victim and the public, and both were told to find their own evidence. Earlier that same year, a young man was tasered and pepper-sprayed on Broadway in Kingston for carrying a concealed can. The Police Commission voted unanimously to recommend that one officer involved in the incident receive “command discipline.” The identities of the officers involved and disciplinary details were not released. In either case, there was no public notice of training methods put into place or deployed to prevent this happening again. These unacceptable outcomes were due to Civil Rights Law 50-a, a state law that conceals police officer misconduct records from the public, allowing departments to protect abusive officers and hide disciplinary and training processes. For the past six years, the annual report from New York State’s Committee on Open Government has called for a repeal of 50-a. In 2017, the authors wrote that “no other State prohibits public oversight of its police in this manner”; last year, they noted that “50-a is now being used to prevent meaningful public oversight of law enforcement agencies. Its repeal or revision is long overdue.”
This lack of transparency led to a lack of police accountability to the community, necessitating the birth of grassroots groups dedicated to justice and equity—among which, Rise Up Kingston has worked consistently and tirelessly to advocate not merely for civil rights but for human rights, starting with the above incident of the SRO assaulting a 16-year-old girl. Rise Up Kingston’s police accountability platform has garnered the vocal and active support and allyship of other advocacy groups, including the NYCLU and, most importantly, the community itself. While the repeal of 50-a and linked bills were passed over the course of three days in June, following mass protests after the death of George Floyd, the victory has been years in the struggle. Years of apathy and gaslighting about “a few bad apples”; years of rallying, protesting, canvassing, and traveling to legislative meetings in the state capitol; years of fighting back against narratives and skewed angles levied by opposing agendas; and years of bringing pressure to bear on elected officials. Years of organizing and leveraging our collective power to see justice done alongside the #SaferNY Coalition, which has been working to pass the Safer NY Act, a package of bills that includes the repeal of 50-a and will help increase police transparency and accountability and reduce unnecessary arrests for low-level, ticketable offenses. No single elected official, person, organization, or group has brought us this moment. We, the people, all fought for and won the passage of this historic legislation through consensus, persistence, and community-wide action. A true end to the cycle of police corruption, misconduct, and secrecy is in sight. And we, the people, as a community, know that we can secure our safety from and regain control of the guardians who will not or cannot protect us even from themselves. We can and we must persevere. We must seize the opportunities and potential of this breath-held moment. The question of who guards the guardians resonates louder than ever, and not merely as an indictment of societal failings and a call to action. Those words are a reminder of the power of people. Of what our determination and vigilance can achieve. Of what we, the people, as advocates for ourselves and as agents of change, can make happen. We’ve won a major battle and deserve to celebrate our laurels. But we must never rest
on them. We must never forget the war. The remaining fronts of the opposition will intensify and we will be continually tested, hereafter. What we’ve achieved so far is momentous: pushing for local police accountability legislation that would finally hold officers accountable for unethical and illegal behavior. Paving the way for reassessing what police duties are and how far their authority should extend. Laying the groundwork to downsize the scope of police duties and the number of officers employed by our community. To defund and divest from the current war on the people, and reinvest in the people. In the equitable safety, health, and enfranchisement of us all. Repealing 50-a and the adjacent legislation is the transformative foundation of political movement and policy that could revitalize our society for everyone. And it’s only the start. We still have work ahead of us. Today, the timeless question of who guards the guardians is no less relevant. It inspires a modern version of the equally timeless answer—the only answer to that question. “But who will guard the guardians themselves?” We, the people, will. Because in the end, “justice is just us.” beetle bailey is a writer and cohost of Radio Kingston’s “The Black Meta,” explores and celebrates Black America and the African Diaspora.
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On June 2, more than a thousand people gathered in Poughkeepsie for the “We Can’t Breathe” protest . Photo: Khalil Rashaad
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racial justice
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO DEFUND THE POLICE? By Alexander Reed Kelly
F
ear. Ecstasy. Revulsion. Relief. How a person reacts to the call to defund their local police department depends powerfully on that person’s experience of police, regardless of ethnicity or color. If the police helped you once—if you’ve been spared too many negative interactions with cops—then you’re liable to view law enforcement as synonymous with public safety. If police routinely intimidate or antagonize you, however—if they killed your father, mother, child, or friend—then police stalk both your waking life and your nightmares with public sponsorship and impunity. Police kill Black Americans at two-and-ahalf times the rate they kill white Americans. They kill an astounding one out of every 1,000 Black boys and men. Even in cases where officers clearly violated some protocol, disciplinary consequences are rarely meaningful. Due in large part to the strength of police unions, cops fired by their departments are often rehired elsewhere. For those who interact with police most, then—Black people, indigenous people, Latinx people, the poor, and those protesting in accord with their constitutional rights—the call to defund police represents hope for survival, safety, and a better society. Two weeks ago, Laura Bellizzi would have recoiled at the thought of defunding Beacon’s Police Department, one of some 18,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide. “I thought it meant that there would be no more emergency response services,” she said in early June at a demonstration organized by the Mid-Hudson Valley Democratic Socialists of America. “But that’s not the case. There is a very small amount of violent crime, like home invasions. And we need to have someone to call when something like that happens. But they don’t look like the police we have now.” Bellizzi is one of more than 200,000 people who downloaded The End of Policing after Minneapolis police killed George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, in late May. Written several years ago by Brooklyn College sociologist Alex Vitale and released by Verso as a free ebook when hard copies sold out this summer, The End of Policing counts all the ways in which policing-as-weknow-it trashes public safety, and examines the vast body of research showing that popular attempts at reform have failed for the better part of a century. Neither body cameras, nor “implicit” bias training, nor mindfulness coaching—purchased at a cost of $4.75 million alongside President Obama’s “My Brother’s Keeper” program— prevented a Minneapolis police officer from killing Floyd by kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes. Nor did reforms save the lives of
Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, and myriad others. Why? Because every police reform that governments have tried has failed to address and correct what is toxic in police culture, says Vitale, including subtle and not-so-subtle conditioned racism. Nor do tweaks in law enforcement policy remedy the underlying poverty, precarity, and fear that can drive people to criminalized activity. Instead of using society’s resources to nourish and support people, we’ve defunded social goods and abandoned whole communities to officers with guns. “This is really a reaction to 40 years of American politicians turning every social problem under the sun, especially in low-income and
“WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT IS AN INTERROGATION OF THE SPECIFIC THINGS THAT POLICE ARE DOING WHICH HAVE CAUSED SIGNIFICANT HARMS—HAVE REPRODUCED RACE AND CLASS INEQUALITY IN AMERICA—AND DEMANDING THAT WE DEVELOP NON-POLICING SOLUTIONS.” —ALEX VITALE, AUTHOR OF THE END OF POLICING
communities of color, over to the police to manage,” Vitale told CNN in early June. “We’re really talking about looking at our gross overreliance on policing in the United States and searching in every possible way to replace that with alternatives designed to build up people, to build up communities, rather than criminalizing them.” Activists aligned with the Black Lives Matter movement understand what Vitale is saying, and some local governments are responding accordingly. Less than two weeks after Floyd’s killing, the Minneapolis City Council announced its intent to disband its police department and work with residents and community organizations to develop a new system of public safety. Instead of sending cops to deal with “noncriminal” problems involving mental illness, homelessness, students, or neighbors, San Francisco says it will send trained, unarmed professionals. Philadelphia plans to cut $33 million in proposed funding from its police budget. Two hours north of New York City, Hudson’s mayor made “a start” by reducing the city’s police budget by 10 percent in concert with a host of modest reforms. Elsewhere in the Hudson Valley, residents are working toward more ambitious goals. “With defunding, we’re talking about divesting from the police department and investing in our communities,” explains Rose Cherry, a member of the Criminal Justice and Leadership committees with Rise Up Kingston, a nonprofit organization in the City of Kingston. “We’re reducing the size and scope of what police do and engaging people who can help our community in a non-violent way, like mental health specialists and drug specialists.” Money currently spent on policing would be reinvested in goods and services that enable stable lives: health care, housing, education, transportation, childcare, food, and good jobs. “It’s a humane approach to solving problems,” says Cherry. Cherry, Bellizzi, and others refuse to accept a status quo that guarantees routine killing. They are begging people—including you, reader—to join them in replacing both policing and our derelict social infrastructure with a system of genuine public safety and wellbeing for everyone. “What we’re talking about is an interrogation of the specific things that police are doing which have caused significant harms—have reproduced race and class inequality in America—and demanding that we develop non-policing solutions,” says Vitale. Defunding is about “trying to reduce the burden of policing today while we work to build something better for the future.” Alexander Reed Kelly is a writer living in the Hudson Valley. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 29
racial justice: essay
STATUES OF LIMITATION
THE WORK OF COMMEMORATIVE JUSTICE By Frances Cathryn
W
e rarely, if ever, forget the past in its entirety. The stories we do and don’t tell about ourselves can expand or limit our sense of what’s possible, and of which
voices are heard. Part of the work of commemorative justice— which seeks to conscientiously correct a biased historical record that suppresses the stories of Black, Indigenous, and people of color—is to shine a light on the inequities in our collective memory. The term was coined by activist Free Egunfemi Bangura, whose ongoing project of sharing silenced histories in Richmond, Virginia, is part of a larger movement for racial justice in the US. The commemorative justice movement aims to tell stories we rarely read in books or learn in the classroom. One way to describe this process is a “critical remembering” of the past. “Storytelling in this form,” argues scholar Monica Muñoz Martinez in her book The Injustice Never Leaves You, is a “process that refuses forgetting.” For her part, Brooklyn artist Nona Faustine refuses to forget the legacy of slavery in New York City, and how, as a Black woman, she would have been sold as chattel labor on the streets of Manhattan. In her 2013 photograph From Her Body Came Their Greatest Wealth, Faustine stands nude on a wooden platform at a former slave-trading site in the Financial District. At the intersection of Wall and Pearl Streets, Faustine appears like a modern monument to the systematic dehumanization of enslaved Africans there. Monuments say just as much, if not more, about the beliefs and culture of the people who erected them than the figures they represent. Most of the Confederate memorials in the United States, for instance, were erected during Jim Crow segregation to glorify the cause of secession. The Robert E. Lee statue along Richmond’s Monument Avenue was first up, in 1890, and more were added during the “Lost Cause” movement and Virginia’s resistance to racially integrate its public schools. Even though it took more than a century of grassroots activism (including work led by Bangura), the Robert E. Lee statue is finally coming down. But racist monuments are not just a problem in the Southern United States. For the people of Philadelphia, that symbol of white supremacy was former police chief Frank Rizzo, who served as mayor from 1972 to 1980. A notorious bigot, Rizzo was memorialized in a statue across from City Hall in 1998. In early June, Philadelphians— led mostly by activists of color—decided that
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the mayor’s legacy was no longer a history worth commemorating, and have removed his image from across the city. Similarly, anti-racism protesters in Bristol, England, tore down a statue of slave trader Edward Colston, then dragged the figure into the harbor nearby on June 7. Shortly after, a statue of Belgian King Leopold II, responsible for the brutal colonization of the Congo, was pulled from its plinth in Antwerp. “Right now, we must work not just to fill the
“THERE’S A THREAD THAT RUNS THROUGH MEMORY CULTURE KEEPERS ACROSS THE PLANET. AND IT’S ALL THAT WE ACKNOWLEDGE AND REPRESENT THE FACT THAT THESE THINGS SHOULD NEVER BE FORGOTTEN AND WE HAVE TO SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER ANYWAY THAT WE CAN. YOU DON’T HAVE TO UNDERSTAND, YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE TO KNOW THE NARRATIVE, BUT YOU ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES AND YOU SUPPORT ONE ANOTHER IMMEDIATELY WHEN CALLED.” —FREE EGUNFEMI BANGURA, ORIGINATOR OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMEMORATIVE JUSTICE MOVEMENT
empty place once occupied by the Rizzo statue, but re-envision the power structures that landed it there in the first place,” wrote Paul Farber in the Philadelphia Inquirer in June. As a local museum worker and organizer, I see the ways that racial inequality and a lack of historical imagination intersect. If we don’t understand our past in its entirety, and finally listen to those silenced voices, we can’t expect to do better in the future. What happens now, where we live? In Kingston at Academy Green, three outsized bronze figures remind us of rarely told New York histories: Peter Stuyvesant tried to eject Jewish refugees fleeing persecution, calling them a “deceitful race.” Governor George Clinton, who also has a building named after him across the street, owned eight enslaved African Americans. Henry Hudson colonized the Lenape territory for the Dutch East India Company. Monuments in public spaces show what and who a community values. On my daily walk with my dog I often pass a parking sign covered in flowers and surrounded by candles, a makeshift memorial to a victim of gun violence in Midtown Kingston. We are already doing the work in real time to reconsider who is worthy to be remembered in our community, we just need to deepen that work and make it permanent. It’s time to acknowledge our own complicity in memorializing white supremacy, and take down our racist monuments as well. Frances Cathryn created the Kingston Monument Project to remove the statues in Academy Green and start a conversation about our public spaces.
Statue of Governor George Clinton in Academy Green Park in Kingston. Photo: Frances Cathryn
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Featuring Special Guest Teddy Thompson
A special online celebration of Clermont Saturday, July 25, 2020 7:00 p.m.
FREE
BUT DONATIONS WARMLY ACCEPTED
Visit www.friendsofclermont.org/concertforclermont to learn more.
32 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Jan Jan Sawka: Sawka: The Place of Memory The Place of Memory (the (the Memory Memory of of Place) Place)
Jan Sawka, The Memory (or The Mirror), 1987, courtesy the Estate of Jan Sawka Jan Sawka, The Memory (or The Mirror), 1987, courtesy the Estate of Jan Sawka
Our doors are closed.
February – 12, But 8 still open online! February 8we’re – July July 12, 2020 2020 SAMUEL DORSK Y MUSEUM OF ART SAMUEL DORSK MUSEUM OF PALTZ ART STATE UNIVERSITY OF YNEW YORK AT NEW
STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK AT NEW PALTZ
www.newpaltz.edu/museum www.newpaltz.edu/museum
racial justice: essay
WHY ABOLISH THE POLICE?
BECAUSE WE CAN REPLACE THEM
W
hen you first heard about the movement to abolish the police, did something clench up inside? Same here. Many find the notion bewildering, unthinkable: How would society function? In defense, we step back from that abyss of uncertainty and erect a wall of rationality. “Abolishing the police is crazy,” we assure ourselves, in an unsettling echo of the president’s Twitter feed. At our most charitable, we afford the concept a rash idealism made understandable by the narcotic effects of marches and tear gas. Inevitably though, we settle for the “undeniable reality” that abolishing the police is “impossible” and that we must “first” try reform. But perhaps we’ve got it backwards. New York State has just repealed law 50-a, a landmark victory for open government and police reform advocates. In its wake, citizens can use Freedom of Information requests to study an officer’s disciplinary record. Unfortunately, robust transparency laws in Illinois have failed to significantly reduce police violence in Chicago. Eric Garner lost his life in 2014 to a chokehold the NYPD outlawed in the 1990s. Nine hours of de-escalation training did not deter Rayshard Brooks’s killer from reaching for his gun after failing to apprehend a fleeing suspect. Body cameras lack the authority to prevent officers from turning them off. This record of stalled reform has a long history. In the 1960s, New York City Mayor John Lindsay established one of the nation’s first civilian review boards, only to face severe political reprisal from white ethnic voters. Once we become aware of this history, it is legislative reform that takes on the contour of psychosis; a repetition compulsion where we citizens continually reenact the traumatic event—our tacit consent to the state’s policing power—in search of a different outcome. Hold that for a moment. All the nonabolitionist reforms to policing have been tried, and still we find ourselves amid a global outcry against police abuse. What if, then, our “rational” belief in the viability of the police is actually a kind of wish-casting? If so, a turn to television may help us make sense of the role the police play in our collective fantasy life. For decades, television has offered the police as a parental figure equally lionized and resented—depending on one’s political orientation—but, like all parents, one who evades our attempts to detach and individuate. Take “The Andy Griffith Show,” a fairytale of small-town policing that was one of the most popular TV shows from 1960 to 1968, the height of Civil Rights protests. Show writers made the titular character a sheriff who functioned as the benign patriarchal village vicar (fans of contemporary British mysteries may already be associat-
By Kwame Holmes ing to programs like “Father Brown”). Griffith spent far more time settling minor conflicts, always with each party’s best interest at heart, than he did tracking down criminals. Imagine the experience and psychic implications of switching between news coverage of Bull Connor setting attack dogs on peaceful protestors in Birmingham and episodes of Andy Griffith’s benign cop paternalism. A few decades later, “Cagney and Lacey” became the first cop show to feature policewomen as fierce mama bears. If they skirted proper police procedure, viewers remained sure that this was due to an excess of care, rather than a disregard for the constitutional rights of alleged offenders. Later still, Mariska Hargitay would perfect the genre as Captain Olivia Benson, a special victims unit detective whose approach to
ALL THE NONABOLITIONIST REFORMS TO POLICING HAVE BEEN TRIED, AND STILL WE FIND OURSELVES AMID A GLOBAL OUTCRY AGAINST POLICE ABUSE. WHAT IF, THEN, OUR “RATIONAL” BELIEF IN THE VIABILITY OF THE POLICE IS ACTUALLY A KIND OF WISH-CASTING? crime fighting was molded by her physically and emotionally abusive mother. In turn, Benson uses any tactic at her disposal to become the ultimate protector of those who, like her child-self, are unable to protect themselves. As viewers, we delight in Benson’s maternal violence against the monsters in all our bedroom closets. I could go on (Andre Braugher’s gruff and distant father figure on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” deserves honorable mention), but no doubt you get the point. Our familial attachment to the police has been drilled into us by popular culture, and our resistance to abolition speaks as much to a trust deficit in our capacity to self-govern as it does to crime anxiety. All of the failed reforms mentioned above only reify our dependence upon police by allowing us to maintain the fantasy that they will, finally, come to love us and treat us in a way that makes us feel safe. Safety though, itself, is an impossibility, one harder to achieve than the abolition of the police. Thankfully, there are alternatives. Kingston Resilience Group is sponsoring a new initiative, neighborhood pods, that is meant to scale down mutual aid to the neighborhood level. Within a “pod,” neighbors construct a new, horizontally
oriented social contract between themselves. While most mutual aid focuses on the delivery of essential services, neighborhood pods would also create intentional agreements around safety. Pod members may choose to pool resources to replace stolen property, to engage in rideshares if a car is vandalized, to supply food if someone is injured in a violent attack. Participants may agree to not call the police, refusing to absolve themselves of the responsibility to resolve conflict amongst themselves. These approaches eliminate the false choice between an evil “doer” and an innocent “done to;” which in turn, reframes crime from an absolute “wrong” to a blow to healthy communal relationships. Such a reframing, some argue, invalidates those who’ve suffered from violent crime and sexual assault. I contend though, that our relationships to each other are precious—they and we are enough—and maintaining them is worth examining and altering any behavior that shatters those bonds. I am not a reductionist. Dependence upon external moral authority—the state, the police, our parents—does not violate us in the “same” way violent crime can. That dependence though, does damage our autonomy in ways no less important than the impact of violent crime. Most importantly, punishment is also violence, and policing in its current form pays that violence forward throughout our entire society. If these suggestions feel destabilizing, I encourage you to take a breath to consider the powerful allure of the police as parental figure. Once there, we can take account of the active role we play in authorizing the worst police abuses. And also, once there, we can make the decision to try something different. Please consider joining our sand boxes of self-governance by signing up at Kingstonmutualaid.org/neighborhoodpods. Kwame Holmes is Scholar-In-Residence at the Human Rights Project at Bard College and a contributor to Kingston Resilience Group’s Neighborhood Pods initiative.
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just transition: essay
JUST TRANSITION
TOWARD A JUSTICE-BASED REGENERATIVE ECONOMY By Hélène Lesterlin
M
any of us are peering fiercely into the future, trying to figure out how to craft and navigate a “new normal,” trying to see a future that prioritizes justice—and it can seem impossible to get there from here. The crises we are facing today are heavy and deeply rooted: racial injustice, climate change, the pandemic, a savage economic system that drives inequity for profit, and a disregard for basic human rights. It can seem too complex, and the changes we need can seem too sweeping. It is easy to succumb to discouragement or despair. But we must make a change. Up ahead, there is a path that enlivens us, that honors all of us, that allows us to live together and thrive, in balance with the planet. We remember, “When there’s a will, there’s a way.” At Good Work Institute, we believe this way forward is to be found by all of us aligning around a clear framework of values that can help us move collectively in the right direction, toward health and wellbeing, economic revival, ecological renewal, and social healing for our region. The framework that can get us there is Just Transition, and Good Work Institute is providing a home base for it in the Hudson Valley. What is Just Transition? Just Transition is a national framework for advancing systems change at every level of society, articulated by the Oakland-based organization Movement Generation. Just Transition is a movement that answers the question: How can we move from this unjust economy to one that serves all people equitably and heals the planet? How can we build and restore cultures that celebrate and nurture all people, and heal the racial injustice that has caused countless tragedies? How can we recenter the original meaning of “economy,” which is “the management of the home”? The concepts of Just Transition emerged from the work of labor unions and environmental groups that were tackling the challenge of how to transition workers out of legacy, polluting industries, while protecting workers rights, creating sustainable jobs, and ensuring equitable wealth distribution. Much of the work was 34 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
developed within communities of color and low-income communities, acknowledging the interdependence of environmental, racial, and social justice. Just Transition has now developed into a broad vision for a more just future. It speaks to this urgent global moment of crisis by providing a clear set of principles for how we rebuild and redesign, so that we can step away from our current extractive, unjust economy, and move toward a regenerative economy that supports meaningful livelihoods and thriving local communities. Just Transition has us see more clearly what we know intuitively to be true: That we are living in a moment of transition and that it is up to us to create the future world we know is possible. As my GWI colleague Micah says, “The current system is working exactly as designed. It’s not broken.” Some people are benefiting from this system and they are eager to extract their share. Therefore, in order to support the living world and ensure justice for all, we must step up now.
THE FIVE PRINCIPLES OF JUST TRANSITION, AS ADAPTED BY THE GOOD WORK INSTITUTE:
1. Advancing Ecological Restoration 2. Democratizing Communities, Wealth, and The Workplace 3. Driving Racial Justice and Social Equity 4. Relocalizing Most Production and Consumption 5. Retaining and Restoring Cultures and Traditions
We must show up, collaborate, create, and actively care for the people, places, and ecologies that support our collective wellbeing. The five principles of Just Transition, as adapted by GWI, make clear what we need to accomplish to create that future. • Advancing ecological restoration
• Democratizing communities, wealth, and the workplace • Driving racial justice and social equity • Relocalizing most production and consumption
• Retaining and restoring cultures and traditions An Interdependent Framework In the past, we have siloed solutions to the growing problems that we see in the world. That can be effective with linear problems, such as the successful eradication of smallpox. At other times, our solutions themselves can trigger devastating unintended consequences because we were too narrow in our understanding of the issue. To deal with climate change, we aim to reduce global greenhouse gases, but that doesn’t address the root causes of increasing pressure on our planet: an economic dependence on constant growth and a continual extraction of resources; a laissez-faire approach to land stewardship that results in short-term profit gains and longterm ecological destruction; and an inability to connect local decisions with regional or even global impacts. What if we activated local communities to protect and steward the land instead? What if that launched a global movement to restore the health of our forests and other complex ecosystems, while investing in non-extractive industries, livelihoods, and living standards? Trees and jungles have tremendous carbon sequestration potential—and frankly, who wants to live on a planet that is largely paved and dead, even if we did manage to bring down greenhouse gas emissions? With a global pandemic now rippling beyond a health crisis into social and economic collapse, the fragility and terrible inequity of our current systems are revealed. Our problems are interconnected in a way that resists siloed
A STRATEGY FRAMEWORK FOR JUST TRANSITION Living Economy
Extractive Economy W
OR
BUI LD TH EN EW
D BA HE PT O ST
L DV I E W
W
OR
L DV I E W
Consumerism & Colonial Mindset
RE
SOURCES
PU
CHANGE THE RULES
WORK RPOSE
+ Extraction Dig, Burn, Dump
Exploitation GO
Enclosure of Wealth & Power
N VER ANCE
D R AW D OW N M O N E Y A N D P OW E R
BUY!
Caring & Sacredness
International
WORK RE
SOURCES
PU
RPOSE
+
National Regeneration
Cooperation GO
Ecological &Social Well-being
N VER ANCE
Local
DI
VE
ST
FR
Militarism
OM
ST
AR
TH VE
EIR
POW
&S T
OP
IN V E
ER
ST I
N
VALUES FILTER A JUST TRANSITION MUST:
Drive racial justice and social equity Shift economic control to communities Democratize wealth and the workplace Advance ecological restoration Relocalize most production and consumption Retain and restore cultures and traditions
ER W PO O W R R OU & G FE
Deep Democracy
ED
Developed by Movement Generation with UPDATED MAY 2017
Graphic developed by Movement Generation with the Climate Justice Alliance
attempts at solving them, and a vast majority of people are too vulnerable. The promise of free market capitalism, supported by neoliberal principles, has failed to materialize as a viable, healthy system for all. Just Transition allows us to think and act differently and not get stuck in silos. It offers a different, holistic lens, so that we see all systems as interconnected and interdependent. It challenges us to rethink our own individual roles. It encourages connection, community, and collaboration. What Is Your Good Work? Many of us are disconnected. The current system relies on it: We disconnect our spending from our local economy, we disconnect our ambition from local meaningful work, we disconnect paid work from the heart-centered work of care, we dive into virtual worlds and disconnect from our neighborhoods, and we fail to listen across differences of opinion. It is time to come together and redefine the complex, joyful dance of life, in balance with the people that surround us, grounded in our beloved places. Just Transition connects us to radical systems change, by bringing our attention back to action and healing, in community. The Hudson Valley is emerging as a locus for this work. People and initiatives are already working collaboratively towards Just
Transition, engaging in what we call Good Work, in a wide array of sectors. We can already feel their ripple effects. At Good Work Institute, we aim to build our capacity as a community and provide access to support for the Good Work that moves us toward Just Transition. To that end, we foster Just Transition skills, aligned projects and initiatives, communities of practice, and a network of people and organizations in the region. We offer workshops and trainings, we act as a partner for developing ideas, we provide facilitation, we design new ways to share resources, we teach Just Transition principles, practices and tools, and we opened a building in Kingston in October 2019 called the Greenhouse, that is a community home base and shared space for Just Transition in the Hudson Valley.
directly in front of us, there would be a massive sea change in our sense of empowerment and our impact in the world. Hélène Lesterlin is a Worker Trustee at the Good Work Institute. Join the GWI Network: Sign up for our mailing list, participate in our programs, subscribe to our social channels and read our blog. Visit Goodworkinstitute.org for more information.
How to get involved • Join groups in your local community that are organizing around issues that you care about. • Reassess your own toolset and what we call your Good Work. This isn’t just your day job, but rather what it is you are committed to in your life that is meaningful, and reflect on how that connects to the principles of Just Transition. We can’t all solve every problem. But if we each commit to solving something 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 35
land use: essay
TAKING BACK THE STREETS REPURPOSING PUBLIC SPACE By Cynthia Nikitin
P
eople are taking to the streets like never before. The national outpouring of protests for racial justice has a second, underlying message: The importance of streets as public spaces where people can and will congregate to express themselves through every channel from civic action to public art. This message is reinforced as restaurants, some cultural venues, and businesses reopen after the COVID-driven shutdown, often expanding into public spaces to allow for distancing and comfort (and enjoyment of the outdoors). What’s really happening?
toward the end of May, curb space reclamation and outdoor dining repurposing started to be unveiled and included in new, comprehensive mobility plans in Europe and Canada to sustain higher levels of biking and walking, beyond pandemic response, into the future. Across the US, too, we find ourselves in a fresh new conversation about the use of public space—a conversation that, for a change, is not dominated by traffic engineers. Half a century ago, the building of the US interstate highway system—along with new zoning laws—was an unprecedented experiment that gave rise to sprawling suburban development. Chuck Marohn, founder and president of Strong Towns,
Expanded sidewalk seating outside Le Petit Bistro in Rhinebeck.
According to Dr. Tabitha Combs of the UNC Department of City and Regional Planning, between March 5 and the end of May, over 260 cities on six continents had undertaken 335 specific, municipally sanctioned actions to meet the demand of people for public space. These included reallocating roadway space to non-car modes including expanding curb space and curb space reclamation for pop-up bike lanes and widened sidewalks (120 cities); closing streets to all motorized traffic (87 cities); creating shared or calmed streets where cars are discouraged and deprioritized (62 cities); and converting public space for outdoor dining and retail (39 cities). CityLab describes the range: “Around the world, cities are scrambling for more space to accommodate an indefinite period of face masks and social distancing: Bern and Vilnius are converging downtowns into open-air cafes; Milan is casting the reallocation of street space as a long-term growth strategy; and a host of cities, from Paris to Oakland, are going big on pop-up bike and pedestrian infrastructure in streets and parks.” In late April, the time when some cities began to loosen up stay-at-home restrictions, Combs reports there was an uptick in closed streets and curb expansions for outdoor dining as municipal leaders began thinking about how to support their cities during a long recovery process. And 36 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
a public space advocacy organization, observes that “the interstate highway experiment was in many ways a dismal failure. Right now, we have a chance to correct those mistakes.” This new experiment is happening nearly everywhere in the world and all at once. For the first time in 50 years, streets and roads (which account for 80 percent to 90 percent of the public space in many cities) are being turned into places for people, not cars. The long struggle to reclaim public space from car dominance seems closer than ever to being won. That is because municipal authorities finally recognize that the real estate value of parking spaces is far more lucrative as places for cabinfevered, quarantine-weary residents to dine in the sunshine, than as spaces for parking a car. In more and more communities, parking spaces are being redesigned as parklets and outdoor seating areas that support physical distancing and are as attractive as they are utilitarian. They may be outfitted with decorative scrims or screens separating groups of diners, with shade to keep out the sun and rain, permeable surfaces to allow storm water to percolate, and with plantings for privacy and beauty. And there is increased repurposing of parking lots for outdoor displays and the sale of merchandise, exhibitions, and programs usually held indoors.
Communities are beginning to grapple with whether these changes can be made permanent. In some cases, economic relief funding is available to implement them. In this moment, it’s vital to consider that how we spend disaster relief money now shapes our communities’ futures far beyond the duration of the disaster itself. A case in point: In 1972, both Elmira and Corning, New York, were devastated by Hurricane Agnes. Elmira spent their FEMA recovery funds on walling themselves off from the Susquehanna River, eliminating any future chance to enjoy their beautiful riverfront. Corning used their funds to rebuild their downtown. Elmira has never fully recovered, and Hurricane Agnes is a topic of conversation today. Corning is still thriving 40 years later. The value of public space in a democracy is being driven home right now by two related issues: safety for people enjoying outdoor dining and being able to run, bike, and walk in once traffic-clogged streets; and safety for the public expression of widespread support for black and brown lives and the demand for their fair and just treatment. As communities decide whether to adjust their streetscapes for the former, it would be short-sighted not to keep the broader equity issues in mind. And we can, by using these discussions as an opening for more comprehensive planning and policy to make sure that those newly expanded restaurant districts don’t bump up property values and force lowincome residents out. What this moment calls for is community-driven planning to reclaim our downtowns and neighborhoods for everyone. Cynthia Nikitin is a senior fellow and sustainable places advisor to Sustainable Hudson Valley.
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7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 37
land use
FOSSIL FUELS ON THE BRINK
AN OPPORTUNITY FOR RENEWABLES By Cordelia Schiller
A
s a community, as a state, as a nation, and as a world, we are at a pivotal moment in the fight to slow climate change. The past few months have brought much speculation on how the coronavirus pandemic might help usher in the triumph of renewable energy over fossil fuels. It’s not so much that COVID-19 has been good for renewable energy, but that it’s been so bad for the already struggling fossil fuel industry. Less demand for transportation has pushed oil and gas prices to historic lows. The effects of the pandemic have exacerbated the financial ruin of fossil fuels and positioned renewables as a smarter investment than coal and oil. However, the long-term consequences of this will depend on the federal government’s response. As Vox reported in early May, the fossil fuel industry is doubling down on its efforts to lobby the government, and Trump has already expressed his support for the industry and his desire to bail them out. The Guardian reported that $50 million of the coronavirus aid package was allocated to fossil fuel companies, and the administration has also rolled back pollution regulations and waived royalties for oil companies using federal land. The potential consequences of this aid aren’t just environmental. Job creation in the energy sector is an important consideration, with over 40 million Americans facing unemployment and an increasingly unpredictable labor market. It’s clear that our economy will need to be rebuilt and cannot just “return to normal.” To this end, research from multiple sources shows that investing in clean energy will create up to five times more jobs than gas and oil will, and will up our national game in new technology as well. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in 2019 that solar panel installers and wind turbine technicians are the fastest growing occupations of the next decade. Government Investment Pays Off Though the pandemic has taken a toll on jobs in the clean energy industry, experts agree that investing in clean energy is a smart and forward-thinking move. After the 2008 financial recession, the Obama administration invested $90 billion in clean energy with the Recovery Act, and it paid off. In a government report that assesses the effects of the stimulus, the Council of Economic Advisors estimates
38 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
that the act increased the GDP by two to three percent and “supported roughly 900,000 jobyears in innovative clean energy fields from 2009 to 2015.” (A job-year means the creation of one full-time job for the duration of a year.) This kind of data is one reason there is so much pressure on Congress to focus aid packages on renewable energy, with support from many democratic representatives in the House.
NEW YORK HAS SOME OF THE MOST AMBITIOUS GOALS IN TERMS OF ENERGY: 70 PERCENT RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY BY 2030 AND A 100-PERCENTCARBON-FREE ECONOMY BY 2040. TO ACHIEVE THIS, THE STATE OFFERS SOME OF THE BEST INCENTIVES FOR THE SWITCH TO SOLAR POWER THROUGH VARIOUS SUBSIDIES, TAX CREDITS, AND GOV. CUOMO’S COMPREHENSIVE ENERGY STRATEGY, KNOWN AS THE REV PLAN, AND NYSERDA’S SOLAR ACCESSIBILITY INITIATIVE, NY-SUN. E2, a national, nonpartisan group with over 8,000 members that takes a business approach to environmental policy, penned a letter urging Congress to pass several measures that were effective in the past, including a slew of bills that offer clean energy incentives, expanding the small business loan program to provide specifically for clean energy companies, and resurrecting a grant program for renewable
energy projects that created more than 63,000 jobs and $5.2 billion in cumulative savings on energy bills from 2009-2015. The letter also advocates for funding educational institutions to create training programs for displaced workers looking for new careers in clean energy, reminding Congress that with “Secretary Mnuchin predicting a COVID-19 driven unemployment rate of 20 percent or more, this sector has shown that it can be an engine for good, well-paid, important, community-based jobs now and in the months and years to follow.” Workforce Development The anticipated increase in jobs will need to be met with a workforce that has proper training. An organization that’s making this happen is the Workforce Development Institute, a New York nonprofit that is “committed to providing New York’s workforce with the skills needed to respond to a transitioning energy sector.” Their efforts have included facilitating the state’s first wind farm technician training school, connecting companies with opportunities in renewable energy, and publishing a thorough report that assesses the growing offshore wind industry and its implications for New York’s workforce. “There is a wide range of occupations involved in the different sectors of renewable energy and many are the same as occupations in other sectors.” says Ross Gould, director of Energy and Climate at the Workforce Development Institute. “WDI has learned that the public is just not fully aware of the range of the jobs involved in clean energy infrastructure projects. In some cases, jobs that come with a community or utility scale solar farm go way beyond what people typically think of and we are helping our partners in labor, industry, government and academia overcome workforce barriers that may hinder our ability to meet the state’s ambitious clean energy targets.” New York has some of the most ambitious goals in terms of energy: 70 percent renewable electricity by 2030 and a 100-percent-carbonfree economy by 2040. To achieve this, the state offers some of the best incentives for the switch to solar power through various subsidies, tax credits, and Governor Cuomo’s energy policy guided by the recent Reforming the Energy Vision process, and NYSERDA’s solar accessibility initiative, NY-Sun. In early April, New York passed a bill called the Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth
Arial photo of ForeFront Power’s Mechanicville Community Solar project Photo: Fore Front power
and Community Benefit Act. Although there’s no precise dollar amount associated with the act, it will speed up the construction, siting, and permit processes for new clean energy projects throughout the state. New York’s website states: “As the state seeks solutions to getting the economy back on track after overcoming the COVID-19 crisis, restarting renewable energy construction will play a central role in the green economy.” Community Power One model that’s helping the state reach its goals is Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) In these programs, communities pool their demand for electricity and use their combined buying power to negotiate cheaper rates for the power— which can be renewable. In 2019, Hudson Valley Community Power used CCA to transition over 100,000 homes and small businesses to 100-percent-renewable energy. HVCP uses the Community Power program framework pioneered by Joule Community Power, and was formed in partnership with them. Participants subscribe to a solar farm, which feeds energy into the local utility grid. Because of the state’s tax credits, residents are only billed for 90 percent of the solar credit value, lowering their bills by 10 percent. Right now, the program provides
solar power to Beacon, Clinton, Cold Spring, Fishkill, Marbletown, New Paltz, Philipstown, Poughkeepsie, and Red Hook. The company expects to distribute five times more solar power in 2020 than in 2019. The pandemic has not slowed down growth for the CCA program. In fact, there is more interest than ever. According to Jeffrey Domanski, director of Hudson Valley Energy and local program manager for HVCP, the program is about to launch a new aggregation of six communities in Rockland County, and probably an additional one by the end of the year. Not only does the CCA save people money, it puts energy decision-making authority in the hands of communities. To further support this effort, HVCP has established “Sustainability Funds.” For each enrollment in the Community Solar program, $50 is allocated to a fund for that municipality to oversee and use. This emphasis on community empowerment is in line with an intersectional approach to environmentalism that is championed by the Climate Justice Alliance, a group of organizations that strives to “Shift the narrative of climate change solution efforts from a carbon-centric, carbon-reductionist focus to one that is people and community-based, and rooted in principles of justice.” Through this lens, a sustainable
energy future does not stop at replacing fossil fuels with renewables. It means building a whole new economy that redistributes power to marginalized communities, since climate change is not a stand-alone issue but one result of an extractive economy that exploits and pollutes the most oppressed. (The effects of climate change fall disproportionately on low-income communities, indigenous populations, and people of color even though these groups contribute to it the least.) The mainstream environmental movement has been criticized for ignoring environmental racism, but these issues are getting more press as the recent protests throw a spotlight on all forms of racism and exploitation. As the country reels from the financial recession and grapples with rampant racism and political tension, moving toward a netzero economy has never been more important. The uncertainty of the present moment destroys both our limited notions of what is possible and our illusions of powerlessness. We can picture a different kind of future—and we can all participate in the organizing underway to create it. Cordelia Schiller is a Poughkeepsie-based freelance writer and illustrator, and a contributor to the Lakeville Journal. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 39
land use
THRESHOLD MOMENT
A CONVERSATION WITH NED SULLIVAN OF SCENIC HUDSON
F
ounded in 1963 to stop the siting of a power plant on Storm King Mountain, Scenic Hudson is credited with launching the modern grassroots environmental movement. From Manhattan to Albany and beyond, Scenic Hudson is involved in some of the most important issues facing the region—climate change and social justice foremost among them—working with citizens, municipalities, and lawmakers to turn policies into actionable models. The organization’s 44 parks are also a tremendous public asset, and all have remained open since the start of the pandemic. I spoke in late June with Ned Sullivan, president of Scenic Hudson, about the role the organization has to play at this time of crisis and flux.
—Brian K. Mahoney
Brian K. Mahoney: Scenic Hudson works along many fronts—land preservation, advocacy, policymaking, environmental education, and community building among them. How does it all fit together for you?
Ned Sullivan: On the ground, we are working to preserve land and create parks along the river and in the key areas of the valley and preserve working farms. We use those parks and lands as outdoor classrooms and points of inspiration and help to define the identity of the valley, which has many local components. But when knitted together, they create a cohesive and coherent presentation of the values that we hold and seek to share throughout the region, whether it’s preserving the lands around Olana to protect the beauty of the views from Olana and from the river and the Rip Van Winkle Bridge to the biodiversity that exists in the waterfront lands, the marshlands at our ranch on Livingston Marsh that has a unique habitat and ranges of threatened and endangered species. How is farmland preservation integrated in Scenic Hudson’s work?
In terms of farmland preservation, we’re both working to protect the farms, but we are now also working to support farmers who want to move toward regenerative agriculture practices and, in so doing so, create a model of farmland preservation and stewardship that can spread throughout the region, the state, and nationwide at a time when climate change action is so critical. And we’ve done this through public policy. We have supported Governor Cuomo and Assemblymember Didi Barrett in creating a pilot program that will support farms that 40 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
are incorporating regenerative agriculture practices—practices that will prevent farms from releasing carbon and methane greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and instead sequester the carbon in the soil and crops. We’re working with individual farms and farmers, but also through public policy and the Hudson Carbon Consortium, which we’re partnering with Abby Rockefeller and Ben Banks-Dobson of Rockefeller Farms on. We’re also bringing together all the leading research farms in the Hudson Valley, including the Farm Hub in Ulster County, Glynwood down in Cold Spring, and even going outside of the region, partnering with Duke Farms in New Jersey and the resident trustees of reservations in Massachusetts. We’re documenting results of these regenerative agriculture practices and asking the question: How do we make the information, the data, the practices that they’re employing available to working farmers who are struggling to make a living and to provide food locally and regionally? We are working on the ground with individual farm lands, farm properties, but also knitting them together into a regional model. And we have some leading scientific groups in the area and in the country working with us on this, including Cary Institute in Millbrook and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute. Cities are also a big focus of Scenic Hudson’s work. Tell me about the Successful River Cities Coalition.
Scenic Hudson has been active in the cities of the Hudson Valley for decades. And we have historically purchased waterfront properties in places like Beacon, Yonkers, Peekskill, and Haverstraw, often taking contaminated lands and turning them into tremendous community assets. Our River Cities Initiative is aimed at going into those cities—we’re focusing on Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, and Kingston, initially—and listening first, having conversations with leading stakeholders about how restoration of the natural resources in those cities can be vehicles for educating the young, helping them get skills that will enable them to advance their formal education, and then how they can, in a hands-on way, improve their own neighborhoods and make connections across the cities by doing so. In Poughkeepsie, we’ve been collaborating with groups to turn the Fall Kill Creek into a greenway and a safe place to both get down and enjoy the creek but also create a trail along it that will connect different parts of the north side of Poughkeepsie and ultimately lead people down to the Hudson.
And there is a micro-farming project associated with that? Yes, there’s a plot of land owned by the city on Pershing Avenue that we’ve been working to turn into an urban farm. And there’s a city park called Malcolm X Park that runs along the Fall Kill that we would like to revitalize. Similarly, in Newburgh, we’ve helped work with the community to revive Crystal Lake. And that at one time had a sandy beach, a lifeguard, a hot dog stand, and was the centerpiece of festivals, but became an abandoned, derelict kind of a place for drug transactions. And we worked with the community to open it back up. That’s operating now as an urban garden. And there are young people who are working with us on this project who are getting high school and community college degrees for the work that they’re doing. The pandemic and the worldwide protest against racial injustice have caused people to rethink kind of closely held assumptions. do you see what has happened over the past few months is cracking open something that you guys are working on?
Absolutely. Our urban initiatives are coming to the heading for us of community building. This is something we’ve been working on since 2017, and so we’ve established partnerships with people and stakeholders and groups in communities. But now we do see this as a threshold moment to make breakthroughs in both policies and in the lives of people in the community. And we want to be sure that our parks and all public spaces are open equally, to all. To Black people, to indigenous people, to people of color. We see this as a moment where it’s important for us to speak up and act and to continue and strengthen our work in the cities, continue our work throughout the valley and educating the young in their role as environmental stewards, but also Scenic Hudson has been forward-looking and speaking out and taking stands for all the people of the valley since our inception. And this is a moment where everyone means everyone. Giving everyone a voice. We’re going to continue to try to ensure that the diverse voices within Scenic Hudson among our staff members are heard, and that we are a bridge to other community members and amplify their voices to make their cities and their neighborhoods supportive of them in terms of the beauty and quality of life that they can enjoy and that can be transformative and supportive of job creation in cities in the valley.
Scenic Hudson is working with the city of Poughkeepsie to turn a plot of land on Perhsing Avenue into an urban farm. Photo: Tyler Blodgett
Dutchess Community College students at monitoring the Fall Kill Creek in Poughkeepsie.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 41
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Register at www.caryinstitute.org/events 42 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
wellness
HEALTHCARE REIMAGINED
WHAT SHOULD WELLNESS LOOK LIKE AFTER COVID-19? By Wendy Kagan
M
any of us ache to go back to the Before Time, the halcyon days prior to the coronapocalypse, when we could share food, show our faces in public, and give each other bear hugs. Yet if you look beneath the surface, not everything was peachy. Our expensive and inequitable healthcare system left a lot to be desired, and still does. When the pandemic exploded in the US, it hit people of color the hardest, shining a light on deep tears in our social fabric of wellness. African-Americans make up 13 percent of the US population, yet they carry the burden of 24 percent of COVID-19 mortalities. The racial justice protests this spring—responding to the tragic deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery—ignited conversations about equality, progress, and much-needed change. Rather than go back in time, we have no choice but to ride the momentum of the current uncomfortable moment to arrive at a new and hopefully better place. For clues on how to get there, I spoke to three local changemakers who shared their visions for reimagined healthcare in a postCOVID world. Their ideas and inquiries— building local and resilient wellness, rethinking hospital design, and creating virtual sanctuaries for self-care—are down-to-earth yet buoyantly forward-thinking. Maybe the After Time won’t be so bad, after all. Building a Community That Cares for Itself The Future of Care group in Kingston is an informal think tank of sorts, an eclectic, selfselected mix of about 15 providers and local people engaged in an exploration into what healthcare for tomorrow could look like in the community. Facilitated by the Visionary Organizing Lab and supported by the NoVo Foundation—a philanthropic social-change organization run by Peter and Jennifer Buffett, son and daughter-in-law of billionaire investor Warren Buffett—the group has engaged in a series of discussions over the past several months. They don’t shy away from asking earth-shaking questions. “It started as a conversation with organizers and providers from the O+ festival,” says NoVo consultant Martin Kirk, referring to the city’s autumn event showcasing street art, live music, and a pop-up clinic where artists and musicians receive care from doctors and healers
in a unique barter system. “We asked them, ‘Do you think it’s possible to reconceive how we provide care in this community from the ground up in a very different way?’ And there was a general sense of, ‘Yes, we do believe that’s possible. We have a sense of what’s standing in our way. And we want to explore this question.’” It’s too early in the process for the Future of Care group to know what these conversations will yield. But they agree on where they’re going. “It’s a vision of a more equitable society where everyone is treated as a full, holistic human being, and all the existing biases in the system
“SOCIETY WAS CAUGHT FLATFOOTED [BY THE PANDEMIC], BUT WE CAN’T BE CAUGHT LIKE THIS AGAIN. AND THERE WILL BE AN AGAIN.” —ROBIN GUENTHER, PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT AT PERKINS & WILL are removed,” explains Kirk. “Other countries manage better in this area. They don’t have the financialized healthcare system that we have, where the incentives actually encourage people to be sick, not well. The system makes more money when people are sick. It’s a system of illness, not wellness.” COVID-19 struck the nation just as the Future of Care group began its inquiries, followed by the racial justice protests that laid bare the hard truths of systemic racism. “The more we become aware of these things, the more likely it is we can reconceive of approaches that don’t make the terrible mistake of having racism built in,” says Kirk. “The in-it-togetherness of COVID awakens people to the idea that we are all interconnected.” In this spirit, a subsection of the group called Kingston Resilience came together to help create a food distribution network and the Coping During Covid Helpline, where mental health support is available 24/7 via call or text at (844) 437-6856. And Kingston Mutual Aid formed, engaging citizens to
create neighborhood pods—groups of 5 to 30 households dedicated to helping one another and reimagining safety without the police. Ditching the flawed healthcare system we have is fiendishly difficult because we’re all bound up in it. Change can happen through small projects of disruption, yet it also requires a big-picture view. “A lot of it has to do with the social determinants of health,” explains Kirk. “What sort of food do we eat? How safe do we feel in our neighborhood? What’s in the air we breathe?” A Harvard study published in May linked dirty air to worse coronavirus outcomes, and marginalized communities have more exposure to polluted air. Locally, there are steps we can take to address determinants like these. “You can deal with a lot of the reasons why people end up with doctors and in hospitals in the first place if you have an ethic where we just assume that this is what we do—we are a community that cares for each other,” adds Kirk, who stresses that NoVo’s role is simply to support the Future of Care group and let the community lead. “We’re trying to go as deep and as full-system as possible. If it gets reduced to just providing three more doctors for the town, then we’ve missed our target. We’re trying to do something on a whole-system level.” Future-Forward Hospitals for Pandemic Times Bulldozing our current healthcare structure may not be a viable option, but we can create a different future within that structure through every decision we make. That’s the mindset that guides Robin Guenther, principal architect at Perkins & Will, who has designed some of the greenest hospitals in the country, including Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth. She’s witnessed—and helped to propel—a transformation in hospitals from wasteful behemoths to leaner, more sustainable machines. In the last few years, shifts have included recycling both anesthetic gas, which has about 200 times the carbon footprint of CO2, and “sterile blue wrap” plastic from operating rooms. Now, with the arrival of a pandemic, even more dramatic change is in the works. “Society was caught flat-footed by COVID-19,” says Guenther, “but we can’t be caught like this again. And there will be an again. We can’t just say this is a once-in-a-century thing.” In some ways, healthcare saw it coming. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 43
wellness There’s an ideology that breaks down modern medicine into different eras of disease. First came the infectious disease era of the 1800s, when legions died of tuberculosis and cholera, prior to the life-changing advent of antibiotics and vaccines. Then, after World War II, the era of chronic disease and lifestyle illnesses like obesity and cancer arrived. “Medical sociologists and historians have long projected that the third era would be resistant infectious disease,” says Guenther. “That means it will be resistant to the antibiotics we’ve developed, requiring new solutions. And it will be global in scale.” COVID-19 eerily seems to check all those boxes, and many experts wonder if this is the beginning of the third era. “The biggest takeaway we should
critically ill. We’ll also see greater investment in hands-free technologies—touchless entry, touchless faucets, touchless everything—so we can worry less about infected surfaces. If healthcare made a few good moves during COVID’s peak, one was the shift toward telemedicine. Former skeptics have become believers, and no one wants to put that genie back into the bottle. “Telemedicine is beneficial for healthcare staff, it’s beneficial for patients not to have to travel to get routine stuff taken care of,” says Guenther. COVID has also given us a wakeup call about the advantages of having a local supply chain, whether it’s personal protective equipment, medicines, or food sourcing. And we’re having a lightbulb
have,” adds Guenther, “is that healthcare is gearing up for this to happen again.” Yet medicine made some bad decisions from the get-go with COVID-19. The choice to shut down care that wasn’t either COVID-related or an emergency has been economically devasting to hospitals and physician practices. Providers are also bracing for a wave of health impacts due to delays in patients receiving clinical care that was put on hold during shelter-in-place. “This is no way to promote population health,” warns Guenther. Smarter hospital and clinic design must follow, and megashifts are taking place in the build world. First, we’ll see changes to the way we arrive at and enter hospitals, which will allow for immediate screening and entirely separate pathways for infectious people. More intake may be done through smartphones, before we step into a hospital. Universal rooms, capable of either ICU or acute care as needed, will let hospitals more nimbly accommodate the
moment about the importance of healthcare providers’ mental health. Features to support staff holistically might include better access to outdoor space, better food, and partnerships with hotels for providers who need to isolate from their families. “It’s a good time for hospitals to see their roles as economic anchors in their communities,” says Guenther, “investing in local- and minority-owned businesses, and really raising all the boats.”
44 THE FUTURE IS NOW CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Virtual Sanctuary and Care for the Caregivers From overwhelmed healthcare workers to grieving families and isolated elders, almost no one is untouched by the pandemic’s emotional impacts. Yet during the weeks of lockdown, something beautiful happened as mental health resources and angst-easing spiritual tools popped up all over cyberspace, creating a new kind of virtual refuge. “A profound sense of loneliness
at the height of our social isolation was clearly evident in terms of the response that we had to our virtual offerings,” says Jonathan Wiesner, CEO of the Garrison Institute, a retreat center on the banks of the Hudson River in Garrison with a focus on contemplative practices to catalyze personal and social transformation. “When we first launched what we call our virtual sanctuary program, which we started within days of closing our doors, we asked the teachers in our local community if they would mind teaching daily meditations.” They agreed, and Wiesner expected 100 people to sign up—yet 1,000 people registered for the free programming. So, they kept going, adding a range of online offerings from webinars to virtual retreats. “It was a total transformation for us,” says Wiesner, who had just come on as CEO in late January. “It’s been an interesting and certainly unexpected challenge for us to take a placebased organization and convert it into the virtual realm.” One new cyber-hub is the Garrison Institute’s forum conversations, which are free webinars led by experts in fields that are particularly resonant right now, including planetary health and social justice. Then there is the Contemplative Based Resilience (CBR) program—an entire curriculum of meditation, movement exercises, and other tools to help people build resilience in the face of challenge. Originally designed for humanitarian workers, the CBR training is now adapted for frontline healthcare workers, whether they’re hospital staff, nurses, or first responders. In June, the Garrison Institute’s website rolled out a video series featuring meditations with Sharon Salzberg and movement with Gayla Styles that can be watched in one 45-minute sitting or broken up into bite-sized five-minute segments. “We think it’s an extraordinary tool for people working on COVID’s front lines, and we’re offering it for free,” says Wiesner. “You read the stories about 13-hour shifts, six days a week, the stress they operate under, and the vicarious trauma they’re associated with, and we hope this is going to be a benefit to them.” Also brand-new are virtual retreats, offered as half-day, full-day, and day-and-a-half options. “These are more difficult to navigate, but they come out of all the reasons why one attends a retreat in the first place—the need to regenerate, to take time to be with yourself and learn meditation techniques from a teacher.” A lot gets lost in translation (say, lovely meals and a sense of place) when you convert an in-person retreat to a virtual one, but Wiesner is finding that people would rather retreat virtually than not retreat at all. Virtual retreats will likely stay on the program until at least 2021, and the institute’s other virtual offerings will remain indefinitely. “We’ve received hundreds of testimonials thanking us for our programming,” says Wiesner. “Now that we’ve entered this realm, it’s with us forever.” Wendy Kagan is the health and wellness editor of Chronogram.
Reception area at the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, designed by Robin Guenther, Perkins & Will. Photo: Emily Hagopian Opposite: Indoor and outdoor spaces promote wellbeing at Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth Outpatient Center, also designed by Guenther. Photo: Halkin Mason Photography
7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 45
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his April, after two years of construction, the Cornell Creative Arts Center (CCAC) was finally ready to open its doors. The coronavirus pandemic, of course, had other plans. Knocking down barriers to access, though, is the exact mission of the CCAC, an organization developed by the Arc Mid-Hudson to provide inclusive arts programming to the Kingston community. Whether the constraints are finances, time, a developmental disability, or even the ability to access the building itself, the organization has designed every aspect of its location and services to introduce the arts to as much of the community as possible. Located on Cornell Street in Midtown, the newly completed 12,000-square-foot center houses a ceramics studio, gallery space, art classroom and studio, and an 1,800-square-foot dance and movement studio, as well as a co-working space and four office/studio rentals. While the CCAC team is looking forward to fully opening the space to the community in the future, this summer they have wholeheartedly pivoted to virtual offerings, which are live-streamed through an app
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Inclusive Approach to Virtual Classes called Mindbody. While the virtual classes offer a solution in the short-term, the team also sees a new world of possibilities for the organization’s long-term programming. For instance, while a last-minute change to childcare plans might prevent someone from making an in-person class, virtual offerings can provide a backup plan for at-home attendance. Those with physical disabilities or irregular access to transportation can more easily commit to one of the CCAC’s classes offered virtually, which are specifically designed for participation by all ages and ability levels. “Not only is this a great opportunity right now, but in the future it will be a great way of offering accessible services,” says Art Director Rachel Jacob. “We’re hoping it really reduces those barriers to participation.” For the month of June, Jacob and the team of instructors also designed their virtual curriculum around the theme of mental health and self-care. “We know it’s so important for people to have that opportunity right now to self-express, to feel their feelings and process their emotions,” she says. So far, the class offerings have included
adaptive dance, a style that modifies traditional techniques for all types of movement and creative expression; chair-based yoga and guided meditation classes; and art workshops designed with both beginning and advanced artists in mind. Because so many people are still spending so much time at home, June’s art workshop projects also featured supplies people might already have in their houses, like making collages from household materials, painting mandala rocks, and creating no-sew tee shirt masks. Later this summer, the CCAC hopes to collaborate with local organizations on art materials kits that students can pick up directly from the center. While this wasn’t the grand opening Jacob and the team at CCAC had envisioned, the shift certainly feels true to the organization’s mission. The virtual classes offer the opportunity to cast a wider net in the Ulster County community and beyond. “We really do hope to see a mix of people coming into these classes. We’re excited to see who wants to participate, and what their wants and needs are,” says Jacob. “There are so many different parts of our community we’re excited to work with.” 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE FUTURE IS NOW 47
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Science fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon, who wrote a number of episodes of “Star Trek,” lived with his wife and four children in Woodstock during the `60s.
Live Long and Prosper THE STURGEON HOUSE By Allison Reynolds Photos by Winona Barton-Ballentine
I
’ve always loved Woodstock. The town got under my skin young. It’s a place I have come home to often. I started by coming up on the weekends from New York City. Initially, I rented the gate house at the Manor, an incredible stone house just before the spillway that housed the engineers who designed and built the Ashokan Reservoir. My now best friend CJ was my landlord, the lady of the manor. The last time I came back to Woodstock was after living in London for three years. I decided to bypass Avenue A, where I'd had an apartment since my teens. I wanted to be in the woods. I had a quick pit stop renting a summer bungalow in Bearsville. My next rental, the home I now own, was love at first sight. The Arts and Crafts house is
up Schoonmaker Lane and down a dirt road, seemingly in the middle of town but weirdly remote. It’s a Byrdcliffe-style house that looks like it plopped down after leaving Kansas in a fever dream. I walked into the living room with its sunny, high ceilings and instantly eyed a small heart made of tiny pearls laid in the base of the hearth. I knew right then I had to live there. The nearly hundred-year-old house is my refuge. Originally farmland owned by Frank E. Larson, a prodigious painter (his portrait of Mark Twain is on display in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian), the property was cut into three three-acre lots. Mine is in the middle. When the leaves fall off the trees in the winter, the mountains emerge and engulf the property.
Sturgeon = Trout I soon learned that Theodore Sturgeon, the writer and distant relative of Ralph Waldo Emerson, lived here in the `60s. Though not well known outside of science fiction circles, Sturgeon was a master of fantasy fiction and was the most anthologized English-language science fiction author in the mid-1950s. His work greatly influenced writers like Harlan Ellison and Samuel R. Delaney. (He is also credited with publishing the first sci-fi stories that dealt with homosexuality in the mid-1950s.) He’s famous for writing a few seminal episodes of “Star Trek” for Gene Roddenberry, including season two’s opener, “Amok Time.” The episode introduced the Vulcan salutation, as well as the phrase “Live long and prosper” to the show. Sturgeon is also 7/20 CHRONOGRAM HOME & GARDEN 49
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The living room features a painting by Letizia Pitigliani over the couch, prints by Robert Angeloch over the bar cart (a family heirloom), and Simi Stone’s Aubergine is on the far wall.
The author bought the dining room table off the former owner, Sturgeon’s widow Marion. The 1960’s dental lamp, a gift from a friend, gives off gentle, painless light. Robert Angeloch prints, Land and Sea hang on the nook wall.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM HOME & GARDEN 51
The massive stone fireplace features art by Josef Presser and Tanya Minhas, along with a bouquet of feathers gathered walking the property.Â
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A Torpedo typewriter, bought in a Phoenicia thrift shop, is a nod to the house’s former occupant. Right: Hugo Guinness’s Banana print and a thrift store bought painting of a Styrofoam coffee cups frame the kitchen window.
memorialized in the novels of his friend, Kurt Vonnegut as the recurring character of Kilgore Trout, an unsuccessful science fiction writer. Vonnegut was honoring his friend’s fishy name and piercing intellect. Sturgeon is also known for overhearing L. Ron Hubbard say that the way to make real money wasn’t in science fiction writing but in starting a religion. I couldn’t get over the fact that I lived in the Sturgeon House. I would sit in the dark and watch “Star Trek,” wishing I was a Trekkie. Then I went to YouTube and watched Killdozer! (1974), Sturgeon’s cult classic about a killer bulldozer starring Robert Urich. I have a few of his works on my shelves—his classic More Than Human (1953), which won him the Nebula prize, as well his collection of stories The Golden Helix, published in 1979. I want to collect them all. Soon after moving in, on an outing to Phoenicia, I bought an old Torpedo typewriter at a thrift store. It’s in the grass outside the screened-in porch, where his kids told me Sturgeon liked to write. 54 HOME & GARDEN CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Application Essay Noel and Tim Sturgeon, two of Theodore’s seven children, rented me the house after their mother Marion had passed on. Two years into living here, they came to clear her belongings. After they sent me an email to let me know they would be putting the place on the market when my lease was up that June, I got up the guts to ask if they would speak with me before they spoke to a realtor. Noel, a professor of Women’s Studies at Washington State University, told me she would think about it. She then asked me to write a paragraph or two on what living there would mean to me. I was charmed by this and more than happy to oblige. Here is part of the letter I originally wrote to her: “I would love to be entrusted with this house as it has some spiritual connection for me. It does need a lot of TLC and I would work hard to make improvements where and when I can to keep its integrity and old Woodstock charm. It feels like the right place for me to settle and I would love to call it home.” The day I bought the house, I got dressed up to sign my name so many times. By afternoon, the house was mine. I started to explore my property. There was a sealed door between what I called the portal and my living space. (When I was renting I never knew what happened in the portal. I knew it was an art studio connected to the main house.) The night I closed on the house, I had some drunk friends help me muscle the door down. Inside the portal, the ceiling and windows are perfectly high, and the western exposure is mystical. The wide floor planks are nearly a century old. As soon as it was mine, my friend Simi began using the space as an art studio. She created beautiful pastel girls. We had an art opening and sold most of the girls. The space encourages art. Now that it’s been three-plus years, I find the place as enchanting as ever. I planted my wildchild English garden and built a fire pit. I’ve barely updated anything else. I have some great art from local artists on the walls. I collect Robert Angeloch’s serigraphs. I have a triptych of his, Air, Sea, and Land, and a great piece called Sawkill at Zena. With great luck, I was also able to come into a Frank E. Larson watercolor of a field up Wittenberg Road in Bearsville painted in the late 1950s. I eventually gave that to my neighbor as barter for road work. And my favorite piece is a signed pastel by Marion Sturgeon that was left in the shed. I feel like she wanted it to stay here. The truth of the matter is I’m driving across the country right now, listening to Ulysses. I’m sitting in a hotel room in Denver on my way to Santa Fe after two weeks in Jackson, Wyoming. I bought a bison skull to put up above the fireplace, above the little pearl heart. I’m homesick. I miss my house in that craving way. I get one sleep before I have to evacuate again, in the age of Airbnb. I’ll tell you the truth. I am not interested in being a super host. I don’t have one free day for the month of July to bond with the place. I can’t wait to have a solid week at home. Mowing the lawn and going for eggs at the neighbor’s farm. Coming and going I know one thing, I’ll be giving the place the Vulcan salutation.
Western light shines brightly into the living space over the peaks of the Catsklls.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM HOME & GARDEN 55
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lenn Nystrup’s teaching career has spanned over 40 years in the Hudson Valley and a range of academic subjects from math to special education, as well as sculpting, rock climbing, and movement and dance. He has worked with students from preschool to college-age, both inside the classroom and out. His book, Anger in the Classroom: Finding Freedom From Anger, was released in 2019 and recently won the 2020 IndieReader Discovery Award for education. What audience did you want to reach with your book? This book is for all teachers in a classroom or not, for all who work with children, and for parents looking to enrich the parent-child relationship and address the difficult moments arising from the natural transition from dependence to independence in that relationship. A reader who is interested in personal transformation may find this book of value as well, for much of my 45 years in the classroom have been about transformation. It is this possibility that each of us has for significant growth throughout our full lives that excites me. For those who share this excitement, this
AUTHOR Q&A Glenn Nystrup talks with us about his book, Anger in the Classroom
attraction to expansion, and this stepping into new perspective and new abilities, I offer this book and these case stories.
Here is one piece of insight I offer from the book: “In the classroom, never express anger when you are angry.”
What drew you to anger as the topic for this book? No one is without experience in regards to anger. It is ubiquitous and often arrives in many forms, from subtle to explosive, both within and around us. It is a topic that can provide a rich learning ground. It’s also a powerful force that needs to be dealt with in its own right. In a classroom, anger can cause friction, unease, distraction, dislike, bias, mistreatment, and worse. It must be dealt with. And not only in students, but in teachers, administrators, and all whose professional work sets them around children.
If someone were to read your book and commit to adopting one new habit, what do you think would create the most transformative change in their daily life? To become a better teacher I suggest taking on a new type of learning for yourself, be it rock climbing, knitting, or foraging for wild edibles. As you learn, note carefully what works best for you. When is the learning and retention the strongest? What is it that interferes? Notice how you learn differently, and are motivated differently by the state you are in, physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Then, focus on how you can verbalize about your learning and how you can pass the knowledge and insights on to others. To enhance this entire learning experience, take notes along the way. Write down insights and anecdotal stories whenever something of value appears. Get into the habit. Keep a small notebook handy at all times. When you look back at your notes new insights may arise and the stories you collect can enrich any teaching.
Can anger ever play a positive role in the classroom? I have seen anger play a useful role in the classroom, and I have given a couple examples of this in the book. But most often, when someone thinks their anger or expression of anger is useful, they are deluding themselves. It is a dangerous undertaking and can easily backfire.
7/20 CHRONOGRAM 57
community pages
Black Dirt Farm in Warwick. Photo: Brian Kastan/Kastan Art Space
Black Dirt Resilience Warwick
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58 COMMUNITY PAGES CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Warwick Valley Farmers’ Market Photo: Bea Arner/Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce
Outdoor seating at Pennings Farm in Warwick. Photo: Bea Arner/Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce
Warwick Valley Farmers’ Market Photo:Bea Arner/Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce
7/20 CHRONOGRAM COMMUNITY PAGES 59
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Mitigation & Mutual Aid The Warwick Car Wash offered re-vamped no-contact service. Fusion CBD manufactured essential-oil-infused hand sanitizer. Organizers from Warwick’s grassroots veteran’s aid group Hugs for Courage launched the Warwick Relief Market, a Facebook page where businesses from Warwick’s five hamlets could host online sales for members, who soon numbered in the thousands. Two hundred volunteers came together to bring seniors their groceries, prescriptions, and any other delivery needs. “People have been very respectful,” says Warwick town supervisor Michael Sweeton, who held virtual meetings with the village mayors daily. “They get it. I think that’s reflected in where we are with mitigation. We don’t have a single case in our hospital right now; cases have been very low overall. We came together and did what we needed to do. From the beginning, we emphasized preparedness, and people took it to heart.” Sweeton is grateful for the built-in advantages of life in the Black Dirt Region. “We were able to keep our parks open, and we’re blessed with the Appalachian Trail, so people have been able to get outdoors and stay separate. And our farms are doing all right offering farm-to-consumer at curbside. I was at Sweetman’s Farm to pick up some things the other day and they said it’s been incredibly busy. They raise grass-fed beef and pastured pork; they have a relationship with a processor that’s solid, and every time a shipment comes back in, it’s sold out the next day.” Big Town Pleasures Just an hour from New York City, the small town of Warwick (population 6,778) features bigtime attractions. It has one of the 315 remaining drive-in theaters in the United States, and it was booked solid with graduations through the month of June, while screening on the big screen and social distancing protocols in place. “Beth Wilson and her family came up with a really solid plan and they’ve done a great job,” says Sweeton. “I was there the night they opened. People were so delighted just to be able to come out and have fun.” In January 2019, the 36-acre Hudson Sports Complex opened for business. Owned by Austrian professional soccer player Christian Fuchs (who plays for Leicester City in the English Premier League) and his wife Raluca Gold-Fuchs, the facility has multiple indoor and outdoor fields for individual and team training and games and tournaments for soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, baseball, and football. The couple have big plans for the former site Mid-Orange Correctional Facility site, and they seek to the site and turn it into a world-class tournament destination with a hotel and spa. As the Hudson Valley readied itself for Phase 3 late last month, Johndrow, Sweeton, and Warwick mayor Michael J. Newhard worked with NYS Department of Transportation and the State Liquor Authority to put the finishing touches on a plan to detour traffic and create an outdoor dining and pedestrian plaza downtown on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings from 4 to 10 pm, and Sundays from 11 till 5 for a few weeks. “There are 14 restaurants in the area the mayor wants to block off,” says Johndrow, “and we’re going to let them put chairs and tables
Baby alpacas at Shalimar Alpacas in Warwick.
Outdoor seating at Yesterdays in Warwick. Photo: Bea Arner/Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce
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From left: Brian Kastan, Mike Pride, and Eric Person perform a free concert outside Kastan Art Space in Warwick on June 13. Photo: Maria Kastan
Outdoor seating at Grappa in Warwick. Photo: Bea Arner/Warwick Valley Chamber of Commerce
right out in the street. Mayor Newhard is an artist and professional window designer, and we’re going to have potted plants, lighting—everybody’s excited.” All’s soft and smooth at Shalimar Alpacas, says owner Patricia Gillotin, a globally recognized weaver and designer of sophisticated alpaca pieces who tends the fluffy beasts with the weekend help of her husband, perfumer Oliver Gillotin. “We’re doing well! We started opening two or three weeks ago, by appointment,” Gillotin says. “People come in small groups of up to four, two groups a day; everyone takes precautions and wears a mask, and we’ve had no problems. And people have been very excited to come, to be with animals and nature. It’s a beautiful season. We have babies.” The Tall Grass It’s not that Warwick’s in any kind of denial about the pandemic. “We have come a long way since March, we are finally at the phases of reopening our region but my friends, we are still in the tall grass,” wrote Mayor Newhard on the village website on June 16. “The expression an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure may be the words to live by, especially since there is no preventative vaccine for COVID-19. We all want to let our hair down, it’s only natural, but this is the
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time we must be vigilant, resourceful, and protective. A resurgence will be devastating on many levels—not only our economic stability but our psyche or our psychological well-being.” The 2020 Warwick Apple Festival, an event that typically draws up to 30,000 visitors, will take place in cyberspace this year. “It’s our biggest fundraiser, not just for the vendors but for our 40 nonprofits,” says Johndrow. “But the way we’ve done it in the past we just can’t do this year. We’re looking very strongly into a virtual Apple Fest. It could be a weekend, a week, a month long, who knows? We want to make sure all our vendors have websites and online ordering ready to go.” That’s Warwick: dexterous. The town, where a goodly number of law enforcement families have long made their homes, has held three peaceful gatherings on Railroad Green in support of Black Lives Matter, the last one (as of this writing) drawing 600 people. A proposed initiative to add diverse narratives to the school curriculum and foster civic engagement for all quickly gained 2,000 supporters. “Warwick was here before the Civil War, before the Revolution, really,” says Johndrow. “Just lately, we turned the old prison into research labs and recreation. We got this.”
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feature
Chronogrammies Chronogrammies the results are in! 20,000 Participants 4,451 Businesses Nominated VOTING STARTS APRIL 192,000 - MAYVotes 31 62,000 Nominations
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he readers have spoken! We would like to congratulate the 128 winners of the first annual Chronogrammies Readers’ Choice Awards. We had 20,000 people participate and over 92,000 votes were cast to determine the 2020 winners. It is a bittersweet moment to celebrate. While New York State has been abuzz with reopening activity in the past couple weeks, we are emerging from a three-month economic holding pattern that has had devastating effects on the small, independent businesses that make up our vibrant economic ecosystem here in the Hudson Valley. In our interview for the Chronogrammies winners spotlight, Juan Romero, co-owner of Duo Bistro, informed us that his bar/restaurant would not be reopening. While Duo is the only Chronogrammies winner that has permanently shuttered, many other businesses in the region share the restaurant’s fate. Places like our local coffee shop and lunch deli weave themselves into the fabric of our lives, so news like this is heartbreaking for patrons. We chose to honor Duo—and by extension all the other closed businesses—in recognition of the important role it has had in the community for all of these years. Chronogram did a readers’ choice competition two decades ago. When we decided to bring it back last year, we envisioned it as a fun, interactive vehicle for giving voice to our readers and highlighting the robust familyowned businesses that define the Hudson Valley. We never imagined that a pandemic would sweep the globe in the middle of the Chronogrammies campaign. As a company, we had a sincere self-reckoning to decide whether or not it was appropriate to continue with the contest. Ultimately, we decided that it was not only appropriate but paramount to continue, in order to increase the visibility of local businesses
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at this challenging time. On May 15, with two weeks left in the final voting round, we announced the addition of 10 new Chronogrammies categories for COVID-19 community response, to allow people space to honor their local heroes. But COVID-19 was not the only major, earth-shaking event of 2020. The murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many other Black Americans rocked our nation to its core, removing the blindfold of privilege so many of us were wearing and catalyzing a wave of protests. As you skim through the list of this year’s Chronogrammies awardees, you may notice that the majority of the winning businesses are white-owned. As a readers’ choice contest, the results are either indicative of a lack of diversity in our readership or a failure on our part to spotlight BIPOC-owned businesses in the Hudson Valley— or both. In any case, we need to do better. (One initiative we’ve recently launched to aid BIPOC-owned enterprises is our Community Grant Program, which supports marketing programs for minority-owned small businesses. Find out more at Chronogrammedia.com/community-grantprogram.) We want Chronogram to be a magazine that reflects the whole Hudson Valley and is read by the whole Hudson Valley. We must do better to amplify the marginalized voices in our community. We must do better to educate readers about BIPOC-owned businesses and to center Black and brown artists and creators. We must do better to cover issues that affect communities of color. We congratulate this year’s Chronogrammies winners, and we thank the 20,000 people that participated in nominations and voting this year. Here’s to better wealth distribution and more diversity in the future.
Green Business
Bread Alone
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n the Hudson Valley, sustainability is a commitment shared by shoppers and business owners alike, with many operations taking the initiative to implement responsible sourcing for everything from raw materials to electricity. Our readers recognized Bread Alone Bakery for their decades of eco-conscious practices. “Bread Alone has been committed to good stewardship of our natural land since we started baking with organic grains more than 35 years ago,” says CEO Nels Leader. “In recent years, we’ve put new focus on addressing climate change with our business. I believe that customers have seen consistent effort from our company for many years.” In addition to composting all food waste at each of their cafes, Bread Alone is powered in part by a 196-kilowatt solar array on the roof of its main bakery in Kingston—that’s 664 panels, or enough energy to power 25 homes. The business is a member of 1% For the Planet, meaning they commit a minimum of one percent of annual revenue to environmental causes. “I am also very proud that we are an inaugural member of Certified Climate Neutral,” Leader explains. “This means that we reduce the carbon emissions that we can and offset the rest, now and forever.” Sustainability is far from Bread Alone’s only forte. They also make a damn good sandwich, earning them readers’ choice awards in the Bakery and Grilled Cheese categories. “Our breads are made using organic grains and natural fermentation,” Leader says. “Altogether we create simple, honest breads and foods. In addition, we try to create a permanent home for our employees where they can thrive and take pride in their work. We try to minimize harm to the planet with everything that we do.” Leader says that when it comes to sustainability, Bread Alone is just getting started. This year, the original Boiceville location will be renovated into a climate-neutral facility that produces breads and pastries for four Hudson Valley retail stores and for farmers markets. “It’s an incredibly exciting project; our goal is to run the facility and bake all of our products using 100 percent renewable energy,” he says. “The planet demands action. The climate is changing at a terrifying rate, and the consequences are most severe for the least fortunate among us. Bread Alone has been driven by values since our first loaf in 1983, today we continue in that spirit.
When folks buy bread, we want to give them a responsible choice. Lots of small responsible choices will add up to the change we need.” —Melissa Dempsey
Advocate/Activist
Food Bank of the Hudson Valley
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n 2019, the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley supplied local families in need with 8,000 tons of food. Then came the pandemic, with its wave of job losses. “The demand for emergency food shot up by 50 perfect practically overnight,” says director Paul Stermer. “We are on track for about 25,000,000 pounds of food this year. There was no chance to prepare, the demand just suddenly shot up and stayed there. It’s been steady the last three months. It’s anybody’s guess what the future holds, but it feels likely to be the new reality going forward.” It is fitting that on the heels of the pandemic, and the organization’s 30th anniversary, readers would choose the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley for a Chronogrammie in Advocacy/ Activism. The organization also earned another win for best fundraising event for their annual Farm-to-Fork Feast. The FBHV is currently re-envisioning future events and campaigns with public health in mind, so stay tuned for details. But if the past is anything to judge by, the Farm-to-Fork Feasts will continue to be mouthwatering. The organization, which handles industrial-sized donations of food on a regular basis, has also found a sweet spot involving the better angels of Hudson Valley foodie culture in the service of a higher cause. Last year’s fundraiser featured Villa Borghese, Heritage Food and Drink, Cosimo’s on Union, Brotherhood Winery, Cafe Spice, Caribbean Mango, chef Zach Berger, the Culinary Institute of America, Henry’s at the Farm, Hudson Ale Works, Janet’s Quality Baked Goods, Newburgh Brewing Co., North Plank Road Tavern, Orange County Distillery, the Ship Lantern Inn, and Whitecliff Vineyard and Winery. The community continues to step up. “Being a 55,000-square-foot warehouse in a Cornwall residential neighborhood, we’re not exactly invisible,” says Stermer. “Lately, a lot more people have been noticing and that’s great. There’s no way we could do this alone—we are our donors, volunteers, and the 400 partner agencies that are doing the actual feeding of people. If we do our part well, the community does well. That’s what sustains us.” Bread Alone. Photo: Misha Handschumacher
Chronogrammies
WINNERS ADVOCACY/ACTIVISM ADVOCATE/ACTIVIST WINNER FOOD BANK OF THE HUDSON VALLEY 2ND HUDSON VALLEY LGBTQ CENTER 3RD RANDI KELDER
FUNDRAISING EVENT WINNER FOOD BANK OF THE HV FARM-TO-FORK FEAST 2ND HOPE ROCKS 3RD R.Y.A.N.S RUN 5K
GREEN BUSINESS WINNER BREAD ALONE BAKERY 2ND THE ASHOKAN CENTER 3RD SOUND EARTH, LLC
ORGANIZATION WINNER CATSKILL ANIMAL SANCTUARY 2ND CHRISTMAS WISHES ULSTER COUNTY, INC. 3RD GRANNIES RESPOND / ABUELAS RESPONDEN
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ART GALLERY WINNER ARTS SOCIETY OF KINGSTON 2ND TARA BACH 3RD ONE MILE GALLERY
ART MUSEUM WINNER STORM KING ART CENTER 2ND DIA BEACON 3RD OLANA STATE HISTORIC SITE
ART SUPPLY STORE WINNER CATSKILL ART & OFFICE SUPPLY 2ND MANNY’S 3RD RHINEBECK ARTIST’S SHOP
ARTS ORGANIZATION WINNER ARTS MID-HUDSON 2ND COMPASS ARTS 3RD HUDSON VALLEY IMPROV
CINEMA WINNER UPSTATE FILMS 2ND LYCEUM CINEMAS 3RD ROSENDALE THEATRE
HISTORICAL SITE/MUSEUM WINNER OPUS 40 2ND FDR PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM 3RD OLANA STATE HISTORIC SITE
KIDS ATTRACTION WINNER CATSKILL ANIMAL SANCTUARY 2ND MID-HUDSON CHILDREN’S MUSEUM 3RD WILD EARTH
LIVE MUSIC VENUE WINNER BETHEL WOODS CENTER FOR THE ARTS 2ND THE FALCON 3RD COLONY
LOCAL BAND WINNER IAN FLANIGAN 2ND LARA HOPE AND THE ARKTONES 3RD THE JASON GISSER BAND
MUSIC FESTIVAL WINNER O+ FESTIVAL 2ND BARD SUMMERSCAPE 3RD MOUNTAIN JAM MUSIC FESTIVAL
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When the coronavirus hit, Alto followed the necessary moves of temporarily closing its retail shops and offering curbside order pickup service, and has been able to hang on to its helpful, knowledgeable counter staff by moving the members over to its online department. “Luckily, we didn’t have to let anyone go—and online sales have actually picked up, since so many people are stuck at home, so all of our coworkers are busy,” explains Barclay, who adds that all staffers are following proper health protocols. It’s those same staff members to whom Barclay attributes both Alto Music’s longevity and its popularity among Chronogram readers, and he and his associates are looking forward to once again seeing their regular (and new) customers soon. “We have a great team,” he says. “And we’re ready to reopen whenever it’s safe to do so.” —Peter Aaron Jeremiah Shaffer at Alto Music
The trucks are on the road, the warehouse fully staffed, and the nimble negotiations and logistics will continue even after the economy improves. Stermer does not foresee any long-term problems with supply chains, just the job market. “Our 30th anniversary party is on hold,” he says, “but we’ve been here and we’re going to stay here until the need no longer exists.” —Anne Pyburn Craig
Music Store
Alto Music
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any brick-and-mortar retailers have been done in by the crushing competition of online sellers. But despite Alto Music’s being one of the largest online musical equipment dealers in the US, Keith Barclay, the company’s head of sales, maintains that shopping for that special new instrument or piece of gear is best done in the physical realm—ideally at either of Alto’s two local Hudson Valley retail locations, which are in Wappingers Falls and Middletown. “Buying a guitar or other instrument is like buying car, really,” says Barclay, who’s been with the company for 11 years. “Being able to see a whole wall of instruments in person, and to be able to actually put your hands on one and play it, with a staff member right there to answer any questions about the instruments—it becomes a personable experience.” Established in 1966 and owned by CEO Jon Haber (who bought his first guitar at the company’s original Rockland County location and began working there in 1981 at age 16), Alto Music carries a staggering selection of electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards, drums and percussion instruments, DJ gear, recording equipment, live PA systems, band and orchestra items, and more. A visit to either of its shops— Wappingers, opened in 1992, was expanded in 2012 to 6,000 feet; totaling 4,850 square feet, Middletown is the nation’s second-largest walkin music retailer—is enough to make any new or veteran musician feel like the proverbial kid in the candy store. No wonder the firm counts the Rolling Stones, Ringo Starr, and other famed acts among its customers.
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Arts Organization
Arts Mid-Hudson
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rom the painters of the Hudson River School through the Byrdcliffe and Maverick arts colonies, the Woodstock Festival, and today’s celebrated local cultural scene, the arts have long been an essential element of the Hudson Valley’s identity, enriching the lives of residents and visitors while fueling the region’s economy. Now in its 56th year, Arts Mid-Hudson has been working unwaveringly to continue its charter mission: “To provide vision and leadership to support thriving and diverse arts in the MidHudson Valley.” That mission, along with all of the great work the group does in pursuit of it, has led Chronogram readers to choose Arts Mid-Hudson as 2020’s winner in the Arts
Arts Mid-Hudson staff on a Zoom meeting.
Organization category. “Over the decades, we’ve morphed to serve the community in ways that are consistent with its needs,” says Linda Marston-Reid, executive director of the organization, which serves Dutchess, Ulster, and Orange counties by helping smaller arts groups and artists obtain grants for projects, partnering with outside arts organizations, and generally promoting the arts around the region. “Besides helping to secure and distribute grants, we offer technical assistance to groups putting on community-building arts events [the Jazz in the Valley and Hudson Valley Brassroots music festivals and La Guelaguetza Oaxacan culture festival are examples] and cosponsor arts classes at community centers and libraries. It’s especially wonderful to be able to help bring the arts to more isolated towns, places that otherwise might not have any arts activities at all.” Unsurprisingly, finding funding for arts incentives under the present administration is a difficult proposition—which perhaps makes Arts Mid-Hudson’s efforts more crucial than ever before. “We have a challenging year in front of us, and we’re expecting cuts at both the state and local levels,” the director admits. “But the New York State Council on the Arts has been vital in working with us, and we’ll be disbursing a new round of grants from them next month.” Responding to COVID, the association has shifted its inner communications online and concentrated its energy on reaching out to area volunteer arts groups and providing artists with the networking they need through Zoom meetings. “There’s always room for more work,” says Marston-Reid. —PA
Catskill Animal Sanctuary
Chronogrammies WINNERS MUSIC STORE WINNER ALTO MUSIC WAPPINGERS FALLS 2ND RHINO RECORDS 3RD BARCONE’S MUSIC
PERFORMANCE SPACE WINNER BETHEL WOODS CENTER FOR THE ARTS 2ND THE FALCON 3RD FISHER CENTER AT BARD
PUBLIC ART WINNER OPUS 40 2ND O+ FESTIVAL 3RD ART OMI
DRINK BARTENDER WINNER ERIN O’NEILL- TAVERN 23 2ND DEANNA CARR - PEEKAMOOSE RESTAURANT 3RD SHAWN - LA CONCA D’ORO
BEER LIST (BAR/RESTAURANT)
Kids’ Attraction
Catskill Animal Sanctuary
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e love having kids visit us,” says Veronica Finnegan, communications director of the Catskill Animal Sanctuary, when informed of the refuge’s selection as Chronogram readers’ preferred kids’ attraction. “The sanctuary is popular with kids because they get to be around animals (of course!) but they also get to learn a new perspective about how every species needs to share the world. Children’s capacity for empathy is so great and they can form profound connections with the animals they meet.” (Catskill Animal Sanctuary also won top honors in the Activism/Advocacy Organization category and second place in the B&B category for its onsite accommodation, the Homestead.) Founded in 2001 by teacher and animal rights activist Kathy Stevens, the sanctuary is a 150acre haven in Saugerties for dozens of animals (11 different species), all of them saved from lives of neglect, cruelty, and abandonment. The facility has saved more than 5,000 animals to date through direct rescue. Visitors of all ages are able to meet and interact with the pigs, goats, cows, horses, lambs, donkeys, turkeys, chickens, and other creatures who’ve found a happy home at the sanctuary. Since May, however, the site has been closed to the public until state-sanctioned reopenings permit. “We were just starting to launch our Virtual Sanctuary program when COVID-19 began to impact the United States,” Finnegan says. “The program (which broadcasts on our Facebook page every Tuesday and Thursday at 1pm EST) began as an offshoot from our youth programs. We had been offering ‘digital field trips’ to school groups that had financial or geographic obstacles to making a trip to see us. We’ve also started hosting free online vegan cooking classes on Instagram Live.” Indeed, promoting a vegan diet is central to the CSA’s mission—and it’s taking root, thanks
to its team’s efforts. “Based on our surveys, over 93 percent of visitors tell us that they plan to reduce or eliminate their consumption of animal products,” according to Finnegan. “Seeing animals as individuals, as beings who want their lives as much as we do, that goes a long way towards helping people make that connection. Kids are ready to see animals as friends, instead of food. Becoming vegan, at any age, is one of the most effective ways to dramatically curb our emissions and safeguard the planet for the future, on behalf of all children.” While the sanctuary anticipates its physical reopening, its crew continues to care for their furry and feathered family. “I have a soft spot for Leah and Tigger, two of our sweet sanctuary goats,” says Finnegan. “If you’re ever sad, giving Tigger or Leah a hug can turn your whole entire day around.” —PA
Music Festival
O+ Festival
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t’s a bittersweet win for the O+ Festival in Kingston. As with the majority of music festivals this year, the festival has been postponed due to the pandemic. Over Columbus Day weekend, the city would normally be buzzing with dozens of live performers, art, and pop-up health and wellness clinics. But if ever any musicdominated festival was poised to continue its core mission—addressing the disparity of health care among artists and the community as a whole—it’s O+, whose parent body’s overarching advocate work has been unrelenting and lies far beyond music itself. “As an organization O+ is very nimble, so with what’s going on this year we’ve been able to temporarily transition away from the festival to doing year-round health and wellness work online,” says the group’s executive director, Holly Kelly. “Through Zoom, we’ve been hosting weekly meditation and stress-reduction sessions
WINNER DUTCH ALE HOUSE 2ND ROUGH DRAFT BAR & BOOKS 3RD BACCHUS RESTAURANT, BREWERY & BILLIARDS
BLOODY MARY WINNER MILL HOUSE BREWING COMPANY 2ND DUO BISTRO 3RD OLE SAVANNAH
CRAFT COCKTAILS (BAR/RESTAURANT) WINNER STOCKADE TAVERN 2ND MILL HOUSE BREWING COMPANY 3RD TERRAPIN RESTAURANT
DIVE BAR WINNER EXCHANGE HOTEL INC 2ND TAVERN 23 3RD SNUG HARBOR
LOCAL BEER WINNER KEEGAN ALES 2ND SLOOP BREWING CO. @ THE FACTORY 3RD MILL HOUSE BREWING COMPANY
LOCAL CIDER WINNER ANGRY ORCHARD 2ND BAD SEED CIDER CO 3RD KETTLEBOROUGH CIDER HOUSE
LOCAL SPIRIT WINNER TUTHILLTOWN DISTILLERY 2ND HUDSON VALLEY DISTILLERS 3RD COPPERSEA DISTILLING
LOCAL WINE WINNER MILLBROOK VINEYARDS & WINERY 2ND WHITECLIFF VINEYARD & WINERY 3RD ROBIBERO WINERY
MARGARITA WINNER SANTA FE 2ND ARMADILLO BAR AND GRILL 3RD MAIN STREET RESTAURANT
TASTING ROOM WINNER KEEGAN ALES 2ND ANGRY ORCHARD 3RD ARROWOOD FARM-BREWERY
WINE LIST (BAR/RESTAURANT) WINNER BRUNETTE 2ND TERRAPIN RESTAURANT 3RD LE CANARD ENCHAINE
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Lady Moon and the Eclipse at the 2019 O+ Festival at BSP in Kingston.
and HO+use Call, a weekly mental healthnourishment series to help people dealing with COVID-19.” Cofounded by a handful of local artists and doctors, the first O+ Festival was held in Kingston in 2010. The full weekend of performances and art brought together local and visiting musicians and artists, who exchanged their work for health and wellness services from participating medical workers and healers. The celebration quickly became one of the Hudson Valley’s most popular annual events, drawing attendees and internationally famous headliners (Spiritualized, Lucius, Evan Dando). The original
Kingston festival gave rise to O+ events in California, Chicago, Poughkeepsie, and North Adams, Massachusetts. In addition to its musical and health care elements, the gathering is also renowned for the colorful murals and other works it leaves in its wake. So it’s no surprise that O+ also earned the number two spot for Public Art in the 2020 Chronogrammies. Even though the Kingston O+ Festival won’t be able to celebrate its 10th anniversary this fall with an in-person event, organizers remain excited about a scaled-down return of the festival for year 11. And in the lead up, they’ll continue concentrating on lifting spirits online. “We’re looking forward to coming back to Kingston, where we started,” Kelly says. “And we’re grateful to be able to help empower the community in the meantime. That’s exactly what people need right now.” —PA
Art Supply Store
Catskill Art and Office Supply
In front of Catskill Art & Office Supply in Kingston at the 2014 Chronogram Block Party.
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Believe it or not, in a region known for its long lineage of artists, there wasn’t really anywhere local for artists to consistently get their necessities before Catskill Art and Office Supply opened its Woodstock location in 1978. “There was one place in Kingston that carried a few things, but they were more of a stationery store than an arts supply place,” says founder and owner Paul Solis-Cohen, who eventually opened a second store, in Kingston, in 1983. “We started
on a shoestring budget, and I had been a school teacher before [launching the business]. We feel very fortunate to have had such tremendous support from the community these past 42 years.” With all that the stores stock and the services they provide (custom framing, graphic design, and copying are among the latter), one can easily see why area artists find the outlets indispensable— and why readers have rated the combined retailers as their favorite purveyor of art supplies. The shops carry a sprawling inventory of materials for artists working in nearly every medium, as well as office supplies, greeting cards, novelty gift items, and more. “We have the largest inventory around, in terms of depth and breadth,” says the owner. “Our prices are competitive with any other vendor, and we have a cash-back rewards program that’s very popular.” While both locations (in 2019 the Kingston store moved from Wall Street to Kingston Plaza, which offers more parking) have been closed during the pandemic, fortunately the business has been ahead of the game by being able to keep artists supplied through its website. “Luckily, we had been preparing our online platform before the virus hit,” Solis-Cohen says. “Obviously, right now we haven’t been able to offer our framing or copying services because our stores have been closed in accordance with state rules. But our website is very easy to use, and we’re able to serve the community that way.” And although that community has long included dozens of celebrated artists (David Bowie was a regular customer at the Woodstock
location), Solis-Cohen is quick to point out that Catskill Art and Office Supply caters to all artistic levels. “All of our staff members are artists themselves, and we work to serve well-known artists as well as those who’ll be well-known in the future and those who just love to create,” he says. “Being known or unknown isn’t as important as the sheer joy you derive from being creative.” —PA
grandmother Joanie opened her own bar called The Village Pump in Pompey, New York, a dream that O’Neill shares. “She had a huge impact on my upbringing and showed me what is to be a good person, loved by those around you,” she says. “Where some personality types may find the mentality of tending bar to be daunting or intimidating, it feels natural to me.” —MD
Erin O’Neill
Dive Bar
Bartender
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good bartender can craft a killer cocktail and pour a perfect pint of beer. But what makes a great bartender? Readers chose Erin O’Neill from Tavern 23 in Poughkeepsie as their favorite regional bartender, thanks to her friendly demeanor, creative cocktails, and killer memory. With more than 10 years of experience behind the bar, the last five of which have been at the tavern, O’Neill has built a devoted following at the hometown bar. “I know customers’ names, what they like to drink, and if they have a usual,” O’Neill explains. “I try my best to listen to what people have to say. It makes my life and heart full to get to know people in my community to build these relationships—and often, friendships—with locals. Hopefully I enrich their lives as much as they do mine—it’s what drives me and makes me love my job: that magical balance of feeling totally content in a fast-paced environment.” Though she credits a gig selling wine at festivals in Syracuse in 1999 as her introduction to the industry, her first chance to get behind the bar was at Mr. P’s Roadhouse in Pleasant Valley 10 years later. “Not many will hire you to bartend without experience, but I found a bar willing to have faith in me and show me the ropes,” she says. At the same time, she had been waitressing at River Station in Poughkeepsie; so by the time a bartending position opened up there, she had all the skills she needed. Then in 2015, when friends of hers opened Tavern 23, she jumped at the chance to be a part of the team. “I’m so proud of Tavern 23, and my family there,” O’Neill says. It’s amazing to be part of the fabric of a place from inception,” she says O’Neill admits she makes a mean espresso martini, and folks have raved about her Manhattans, but she’s also known for designing signature drinks for regulars, inspired by their tastes and conversations she’s had with them. “This all started with a special margarita for a customer, Mo, who became my friend. The MoGarita contains Patron Silver, Cointreau, half a fresh squeezed lime, and half a fresh squeezed orange, topped off with cranberry juice before you shake.” The twist on a classic has continued evolving for other customers. “I regularly make Mike-a-Ritas and Tommy-Ritas, and so on,” she says. “When people see me squeezing citrus, they have to know what I’m making.” When she’s not at work, O’Neill can usually be found supporting the local music scene or catching a favorite national act like Tori Amos; though, the COVID-19 pandemic gave her plenty of time at home to indulge in another passion: cooking. As the Tavern reopens, O’Neill will be there. “Bartending is in my blood— seriously,” she explains. Her Irish maternal
The Exchange Hotel
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he phrase “great dive bar” might have been an oxymoron in decades past, but today hometown bars wear the moniker like a badge. While some newer establishments are trying to create this authentic hole-in-the-wall, been-there-forever vibe, readers instead chose the nearly-a-century-old Saugerties bar the Exchange Hotel as their top pick in dives. “The Exchange is a local legend,” says Nicole Buono, daughter of co-owners Donna and Anthony Buono. “It’s one of the oldest businesses in the area and has been a staple business within the Saugerties community for years—with hopefully many more to come.” Built in the 1820s, the Exchange was formerly a hotel with a restaurant and bar, named aptly so because it was a place where horses could be exchanged during long travel; the horse stables were located behind the building, where the dining area currently stands. It was purchased in 1929 by the Buono family and has remained in their hands for the past 91 years. Today, the Exchange is a classic dive bar equipped with a pinball machine, pool table, and fully functioning pay phone. “The Exchange has always been a family-run business, you can find either owner at the bar on any given day; they are the life, soul, and heart of the business” Buono says. “A lot of people say you haven’t experienced Saugerties unless you’ve been to Exchange. Parents will bring their kids in on their 21st birthday to enjoy their first alcoholic beverage, like a rite of passage. We have a lot of regulars, many who have become like a family; they always sit in the same seat and our bartenders know exactly what to pour when they walk in.” It has even been featured on the “The Tonight Show” during a sketch last year in which Saugerties native Jimmy Fallon and country artist Jason Aldean sang about visiting a hometown bar on Thanksgiving Eve. Though the coronavirus pause put a dent in the Exchange’s day-to-day, they remained open for takeout, selling out of their popular pizza within hours for the first few weeks. Months later, they’ve kept rolling with the changes, evolving as needed, including patio dining during Phase 2 of reopening. “This is the longest amount of time in history the Exchange has ever been closed to the public, except during Prohibition—it’s rumored we were open during that time, but we cannot confirm nor deny,” Buono says. “The Ex is truly the oldest bar in town and we have tried to keep its character alive throughout the years. While many things in Saugerties have changed, the Exchange has remained the same.” —MD
Chronogrammies WINNERS
FASHION/DESIGN FURNITURE MAKER WINNER LOVE WOOD CO. 2ND MILLSPAUGH FURNITURE 3RD BLACKCREEK MERCANTILE & TRADING CO.
HANDMADE / LOCALLY SOURCED WINNER HANDMADE AND MORE 2ND LUCKY BUG CLOTHING 3RD KING + CURATED
HOUSEWARES/FURNISHINGS WINNER WOODSTOCK CHIMES 2ND BLUECASHEW KITCHEN HOMESTEAD 3RD KNOT TOO SHABBY
MEN’S SHOP WINNER LAST OUTPOST STORE 2ND HAMILTON & ADAMS 3RD RHINEBECK DEPARTMENT STORE INC.
VINTAGE WINNER ROCK CANDY VINTAGE 2ND LOVEFIELD VINTAGE 3RD RUINOUS REVIVED
WOMEN’S BOUTIQUE WINNER HUDSON SQUARE BOUTIQUE 2ND BOP TO TOTTOM 3RD WOODSTOCK DESIGN
FOOD AL FRESCO DINING WINNER OLE SAVANNAH TABLE & BAR 2ND GARDEN CAFE WOODSTOCK 3RD BOITSON’S RESTAURANT
BAKERY WINNER BREAD ALONE CAFE 2ND DEISING’S 3RD THE MELTAWAY BAKERY
BBQ WINNER HICKORY BBQ & SMOKEHOUSE 2ND BILLY JOE’S RIBWORKS 3RD BILLY BOB’S BBQ
BRUNCH SPOT WINNER DUO BISTRO 2ND MAIN STREET BISTRO 3RD CAFE MIO
BUFFET WINNER CINNAMON INDIAN RESTAURANT 2ND MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE 3RD MID HUDSON BUFFET
BURGER WINNER THE ANCHOR 2ND DUTCH ALE HOUSE 3RD BUNS BURGERS
CHEAP EATS WINNER DALLAS HOT WEINERS 2ND THE ANCHOR 3RD MOLE MOLE
CHICKEN WINGS WINNER THE ANCHOR 2ND MCGILLICUDDY’S 3RD CROSSROADS BREWING COMPANY
DINER WINNER PHOENICIA DINER 2ND EVEREADY DINER 3RD DIETZ STADIUM DINER
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pandemic struck the region, the Mill House team got creative. “Since March 17, we’ve had various offerings between a drive-through beer tent; curbside takeout for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; and various pop-ups,” she explains. “Our community is always supportive of Mill House but has been even more so during these unprecedented times. We can’t wait to see everyone again inside our restaurant, enjoying a house-cooked meal and crafted cocktails over live music and laughter.” —MD
Millbrook Vineyard & Winery
Local Wine
Millbrook Vineyard & Winery
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Last Outpost Store
Bloody Mary
Mill House Brewing Company
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e know that Mill House Brewing Co. serves up refreshing locally crafted beer and top-quality cocktails; you voted for them as runner-up in both categories. But where our readers think Mill House really shines is when it comes to that famous morning-after pick-me-up: The Bloody Mary. “It’s not a typical Bloody Mary,” explains Kimberly Glatz, digital media manager. “We craft ours with two of our own beers; ingredients include our Köld One Kolsch, fresh lime, house bloody mix, chili-lime salt, and a stout float.” Though technically the name for this sort of bloody-beer is called a Michelada—a spicy, Mexican-inspired Bloody that swaps vodka for beer, Glatz credits Mill House’s distinctive blend of ingredients as the reason why their drink stands out from the rest. It’s undeniable that this mix of heat, salt, and lime mixed into a cold, crisp 70 CHRONOGRAMMIES CHRONOGRAM 7/20
beer, is a refreshing brunch staple. With creative concoctions like this, it’s obvious why readers voted Mill House as the secondfavorite spot Cocktails. Other popular options include the Localista, made with house-infused apple vodka, lemon, cinnamon, and Nine Pin Signature Cider; and Shinebox, a black teainfused bourbon with lemon, orange, and rhubarb bitters—which makes our mouths water by just reading its description. But when it comes to a fresh pint, the brewpub draws its dedicated beer enthusiasts. “Our most popular beers rotate with the seasons sometimes, but ultimately are Köld One, Cucumber Blessings, and Grocery Getter,” Glatz explains. As the name would imply, Cucumber Blessings is a cream ale with hints of cool cucumber, while the Grocery Getter is a citrusy New England IPA whose name is derived from the brew’s origins as a collaboration with Whole Foods Markets. Though the brewpub couldn’t invite guests into its rustic Poughkeepsie taproom after the
ineries have seen steady growth across our region in the last decade. And while many offer an appealing blend of picturesque grounds, a taproom, and tasting events, the proof is in the pudding, err, wine. And as any vintner will tell you, it takes a long time to perfect the craft. It makes sense then that Chronogram readers gave the award for local wine to Millbrook Vineyards and Winery, which has almost four decades of experience making wine in the Hudson Valley. “Millbrook is celebrating our 35th vintage in 2020 and we have had the same winemaker since the beginning—John Graziano,” explains its vice president and general manager, David Bova. “Over the years, we’ve developed a fantastic local following since our wines are finely crafted, balanced, and very easy to drink. All of our wines are dry and meant to be drunk by themselves or with lighter food dishes. John really knows how to make well-balanced wines; I think our customers have come to appreciate that very much.” Set on a former dairy farm, Millbrook’s vineyards encompass 35 fertile acres, on which they grow their own grape varieties to produce 15,000 cases of wine each year—their most popular being Chardonnay, Tocai Friulano, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Franc. “We believe that in good growing seasons, our Hudson Valley grapes outperform fruit from the Finger Lakes and Long Island, where we also buy [a portion of our grapes] from,” Bova says. “Our vineyard is not only beautiful, but also a wonderful site to grow grapes. The soils are deep and gravelly, welldrained, and perfectly situated for maximum sun exposure. There is a saying in the wine business: ‘Wines are made in the vineyard.’ You can’t make great wine out of crummy fruit. Also, the 35 years’ experience of John Graziano certainly helps a lot, as he has seen most everything Mother Nature can throw at him.” As of this year, that includes a global pandemic. Due to the combination of factors, including closing their tasting room and restaurant for service, as well as postponing scheduled onsite events like weddings, Millbrook lost about 40 percent of its business this spring. But they plan to reopen to the public as phases allow, rescheduling events to later dates, and are confident they’ll continue on. If there was anything that was trending during quarantine, it was wine. “We would like to thank all of our customers—retailers and restaurants, too—for all of the support they have given us over three-and-
Chronogrammies WINNERS DOG-FRIENDLY DINING WINNER KEEGAN ALES 2ND ARMADILLO BAR AND GRILL 3RD GARDEN CAFE WOODSTOCK
DUMPLINGS WINNER YUM YUM NOODLE BAR 2ND PALACE DUMPLINGS 3RD HOKKAIDO JAPANESE RESTAURANT
FALAFEL WINNER ABA’S FALAFEL 2ND OPA! GYROS GREEK RESTAURANT 3RD JOSHUA’S CAFE
FANCY DINNER WINNER TERRAPIN RESTAURANT 2ND RED ONION 3RD LE CANARD ENCHAINE
FARM STAND Love Wood Co.
a-half decades,” Bova says. “We never thought we would be this successful, and we realize it’s all due to our great local customers who have supported our products for many years.” —MD
Men’s Shop
Last Outpost Store
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ur readers fell in love fast with Last Outpost, a timeless and stylish shop that opened on Beacon’s Main Street just last August. “A woman came in and said, ‘Did you know you’re nominated for a Chronogrammie?’ and I said, ‘Wonderful! But how does anyone even know who I am?’” says Chris Cimino, who opened the outdoor apparel and lifestyle shop with his wife, Allison. It turns out that good taste gets noticed, and our readers’ choice for men’s shop is a cut above the rest with products ranging from sustainably sourced cotton T-shirts to elegant, practical enamelware that transitions from kitchen to campsite and back without a hitch. And even though Last Outpost was forced to close its doors during lockdown, loyal customers stuck around via online sales. “We started getting the website together soon after we opened, and then it became urgent in March,” says Cimino. “A couple of weeks later we announced [the site] and neighbors and customers stepped up. We started free local delivery and people were sending the most beautiful messages back.” The Ciminos met in New York City (he’s from Carmel, she’s from St. Louis) and relocated to Beacon, where they found the future home of their shop in an 1886 building in early spring 2019. They spent four months renovating— dropped ceilings were removed to reveal oldschool pressed tin. They added 20-foot long shelves repurposed from a derelict building in Wappingers Falls and made a display rack out of a discarded wooden ladder, and then set about filling the shop with things they loved, classic and novel. “It’s curated so that when you come in, there’s
a lot to see,” says Cimino, of the photogenic shop. “I’d say 75 to 80 percent of the store is artists, most of whom we know. There are things we make ourselves—the beard, hair, and skin oil, Allison’s sterling silver jewelry. Then there’s Larry, our FedEx guy. He makes the birdhouses. The belts are from a leathersmith I know, and our soaps are made right here in Beacon. The rest is sustainable in some way. People come in and fall in love with a t-shirt and then find out their purchase funds the planting of 10 trees. And there is always flannel. I am a total flannel guy, I live in it, so we stock it year round.” —APC
Furniture Maker
Love Wood Co.
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t is fitting that Carolyn Monaghan’s Love Wood Co. would earn a readers’ choice award, since the company was born out of popular demand. Monaghan, a native of West Saugerties, grew up around lumber, helping on carpentry jobs and at the family sawmill, J. Mullen & Sons. She was working as a trained graphic artist when the wood called her home. “I was up at my brother’s sawmill and I saw these incredibly beautiful scraps that were just going to get tossed, and I thought, ‘I could make those into neat Christmas presents for the family.’” She burned family members’ names on wood to create name plates, which were an instant hit. “People would admire them and then it was, ‘Can your sister make me one like that?’ and, well, it just started little by little like that. Now I’m at it full time.” Monaghan has gone beyond the name plaques, using her blend of graphic arts talent and woodworking craft to make a range of decorative and useful items. “I have a little shop, mostly I make cutting boards, a few tables, and things. I’m not sure who put me in the Furniture Maker category,” she says with a laugh. “Maybe I’ll have to start making more furniture? But I can put anything you want on the right piece of wood; I’ve done silhouettes of people’s homes, their
WINNER DAVENPORT FARM MARKET 2ND STORY FARMS 3RD MIGLIORELLI FARM
FARMERS’ MARKET WINNER KINGSTON FARMERS’ MARKET 2ND SAUGERTIES FARMERS’ MARKET 3RD RHINEBECK FARMERS’ MARKET
FOOD TRUCK WINNER THE GREEN PALATE FOOD TRUCK 2ND PIPPY’S FOOD TRUCK 3RD FARMERS AND CHEFS
FRIED CHICKEN WINNER OLE SAVANNAH 2ND BOITSON’S RESTAURANT 3RD PAKT
GLUTEN-FREE WINNER ABA’S FALAFEL 2ND LAGUSTA’S LUSCIOUS 3RD ELLA’S BELLAS BAKERY
GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH WINNER BREAD ALONE CAFE 2ND MAIN STREET BISTRO 3RD CIRCLE W MARKET
ICE CREAM STAND WINNER HOLY COW ICE CREAM 2ND BOICE BROTHERS DAIRY 3RD JOLLY COW
LATE NIGHT EATS WINNER DIETZ STADIUM DINER 2ND THE ANCHOR 3RD TERRAPIN RESTAURANT
OYSTERS WINNER LE PETIT BISTRO 2ND BOITSON’S RESTAURANT 3RD GADALETO’S
PASTA WINNER SAVONA’S TRATTORIA 2ND FRANK GUIDO’S LITTLE ITALY 3RD A TAVOLA TRATTORIA
PIZZA WINNER SLICES OF SAUGERTIES 2ND CATSKILL MOUNTAIN PIZZA CO 3RD PIE FOR THE PEOPLE
SANDWICH WINNER ROSSI’S DELI 2ND JOE BEEZ 3RD ABA’S FALAFEL
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pets, whatever is meaningful to them.” Monaghan’s work is largely Catskillsinspired—she makes her home near Platte Clove and is passionate about her territory. Her goods can be found in a few select retail outlets, as well as on her website. Her West Saugerties woodshop is open to clients who want to choose the perfect slab for their cutting board or countertop. “I love working with live-edge slabs of black walnut or spalted maple,” she says. “I don’t have an actual store, but you’re welcome to bring your idea and fall in love with your perfect piece of wood.” As for Monaghan, she has her own love story with each piece of wood. When she came home and found her medium, life clicked into place. The family’s proud as could be. “My brother gives me pieces of black walnut for my birthday; he knows it’s the best present I could get—wood that would otherwise go to waste,” she says. “I love that I can give it renewed life.” —APC
Brunch
Duo Bistro
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here’s a word that can instantly elicit eyewidening anticipation, hunger, and an enthusiastic “Yes!” from foodies: brunch. And our readers love Duo Bistro’s menu of sweet and savory dishes enough to garner the Kingston eatery a Chronogrammie win. “I’d like to think Duo’s brunch is so appealing because we offer a really good, eclectic menu, not like what you’d typically find at a diner or breakfast spot, and in a really beautiful building,” says owner and chef Juan Romero. “We’re also located within a really niche economy where people love elevated food; sometimes they just want more than a Western omelet with rye and a stack of pancakes.” Romero also gives due credit to staff, some who have been with Duo through the last eight years. “Our staff is one of the big reasons why we’ve been popular—they have great ideas, create the right atmosphere, and add so much to the customer experience,” he says. He acknowledges former co-owner Shawna Dunworth and front of house manager Sheri Craig with developing their popular cocktail and drinks menu; Duo has also been recognized by our readers with a secondplace accolade for Bloody Mary. Though some brunch menu items would change seasonally, staples include bread pudding French toast with berry compote, and the Working Stiff, which consists of two eggs, bacon, chicken sausage, salad, house wheat toast, and smashies—an addicting side of salted, tender, crushed fingerling potatoes. Omelets in flavors like butternut squash with roasted apple, goat cheese, and sage; or bacon, mushroom, and brie are among favorite dishes patrons love. But as they say, love is not enough; after financial complications exacerbated by the pandemic shutdowns, Duo will not be reopening. “As good and strong as our concept was, we weren’t doing the greatest going into the pandemic, and now, there’s no way we can recover from the losses,” Romero says. “I think the industry as a whole is going to feel the effects for a while. Even when restaurants can reopen and function normally, it’ll be some time before a
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Aba’s Falafel
table of four can sit next to another and not have a sense of fear when someone sneezes. Also, with so much time at home, a lot of people have been learning to cook, realizing they don’t need to go out to eat three times a week.” That said, he encourages people to still support local farmers and food producers as much as possible. “Another thing we promoted at Duo was the local food movement—clean, responsible food—and I really want to encourage people to still seek that out,” he says. “When the pandemic struck, for a while many people could only shop at Walmart and other major chains where the food comes from anywhere, but it’s important to try as much as possible to support community agriculture and food producers; they’ve been hit hard, too.” Though it may be a while before Romero takes on another restaurant (miss you, smashies), he says he wouldn’t rule it out. In the meantime, he’ll be focusing his attention on his catering service and food truck, Lekker, while also enjoying some extra time with his kids, ages four and eight. “This year has brought an unexpected blessing to spend time with my kids—I don’t usually get to enjoy summers with them,” he says. “But I expect my catering business to pick back up in a few months, too—and there are always more projects on the horizon.” —MD
Falafel
Aba’s Falafel
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risp on the outside, soft and savory within; there’s nothing like a good falafel pita sandwich, and luckily our region has a handful of restaurants that have practically perfected this Mediterranean delicacy. Our readers’ favorite? Aba’s Falafel in Rhinebeck, the farmer’s market darling-turned-East Market Street mainstay. “Our falafel balls themselves are simple, yet fresh and tasty,” says co-proprietor Cathy Naor, who owns the restaurant with her husband, Roy. “We use organic chickpeas, without fillers, and with lots of fresh parsley, cilantro, and onion. We also fry the falafels to order so they are crunchy on the outside.” Aba’s typically serves Israeli-style falafels in a pita with earthy tahini and fresh salads. And minus the pita, everything on the menu is
naturally gluten-free, which secured the eatery a top Chronogrammie spot for gluten-free dining, as well. “We tweaked a basic recipe, making our falafels gluten-free and lighter, to our liking,” Naor explains. “Our food in general is simple—no more than five ingredients, most of the time—not too heavy, and healthy. Everything is prepared to order, so it’s very fresh. We’re not afraid of using spices and flavors, and a lot of thought was put into not just each ingredient, but how they all fit together. That said, we also offer spicy or tangy condiments alongside our falafels.” In addition to the two top readers’ picks, Aba’s also received runner-up status for favorite Sandwich, Vegan, and Vegetarian dining. This dedicated fan base eagerly helped keep them afloat during the coronavirus shutdowns. With years of past experience hawking falafel at farmers’ markets, fairs, and festivals, Aba’s was able to make the quick switch to takeout-only during the beginning of the pandemic. “Since the start of the COVID-19 situation we had been offering takeout, plus we put up a Plexiglas wall so all of us behind the counter are not exposed, and of course, we wear masks and maintain the six-foot distancing, too,” she says. “As of Phase 2 we’re offering outdoor seating, also in line with social distancing guidelines— we’re excited for that.” —MD
Chicken Wings
The Anchor
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rom happy hour snack to late night craving, there’s nothing like a good plate of saucy wings, and Chrongorammies voters chose the Anchor as their favorite spot to indulge. “We work really hard to put out a great, quality product,” says Anchor co-owner Brandy Walters. “I think the community appreciates the time and great flavors.” The mouth-watering options include Chipotle BBQ, Thai Chili, Hot Maple, Garlic Parmesan (hungry yet?), Irish Curry, Greek Dry Rub, and Nashville Hot, made with all-natural, hormone-free chicken—or battered and fried cauliflower, for a plant-based option. Beyond offering quality food and a jovial environment, the Anchor also focuses on timely
Chronogrammies WINNERS STEAK WINNER SHIP TO SHORE 2ND RED ONION 3RD TERRAPIN RESTAURANT
SUSHI WINNER HOKKAIDO JAPANESE RESTAURANT 2ND SUSHIMAKIO 3RD KYOTO SUSHI
TACO WINNER DIEGO’S TAQUERIA 2ND MAIN STREET RESTAURANT 3RD HUDSON TACO
VEGAN-FRIENDLY WINNER GARDEN CAFE WOODSTOCK 2ND BLACK-EYED SUZIE’S UPSTATE 3RD ABA’S FALAFEL
VEGETARIAN WINNER GARDEN CAFE WOODSTOCK 2ND ABA’S FALAFEL 3RD BLACK-EYED SUZIE’S The Anchor
social issues relevant to its Kingston community, like immigrant rights, LGBTQ issues, and food insecurity, hosting events to raise money and awareness. This conscientiousness also applies to the food they provide, from sourcing to pricing, which is one reason why they received a nod from readers as the second-place spot for Cheap Eats. “We try to source as responsibly as possible; for us this also means keeping our food affordable,” Walters says. “We want to be accessible to the whole community.” For instance, the beef for their burgers—which also earned them a Chronogrammie—comes from Kilcoyne Farms in Hudson Falls. “We love them so much; they are such an amazing family,” she says. “Sourcing locally has really saved us [during the pandemic] as we never had to worry about not being able to get stock from them, since they’re small and local.” Speaking of, we’d be remiss not to give props to the Anchor for being quick on their feet to make the switch to a takeout/delivery model during the pandemic, even going the extra mile to sell groceries and common household items in addition to their prepared dishes. “In a matter of 48 hours we had to completely change our business,” Walters explains. “It wasn’t easy but we’re thankful that we were able to make that pivot quickly.” As for dining in-house again, that’ll have to wait. “We’ve made the decision to not rush into reopening,” she says. “We are going to wait it out to make sure we all feel safe doing so.” But of course, in the meantime, you can count on those wings being on the takeout menu. “As long as people keep wanting them, we will keep making them.” —MD
Vegan Restaurant
Garden Cafe
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Chronogrammie for Vegan Restaurant is a wonderful way for the Garden Cafe to celebrate its fifth anniversary since Lea Haas took over as owner. (Garden Cafe was a reader
favorite, also winning for Vegetarian Restaurant and taking home third place honors in Al Fresco Dining and Dog-Friendly Restaurant.) With interest in plant-based diets on the rise, the cafe is sure to celebrate many future milestones. With a menu completely devoid of animalbased products, this Woodstock staple is known for crowd-pleasing dishes like noodle-free lasagna with layers of fresh veggies, house-made marina, and a cashew-based “ricotta”; the phyllo mushroom tart—a flaky, buttery phyllo with local, wild mushrooms and fresh herbs; and tofu satay, a baked tofu dish with a spicy peanut sauce over crunchy orange-ginger slaw. But the cafe offers more to its guests than just satisfying meals: It fosters a community of shared values for locals and travelers alike. “Besides beautiful organic meals, it’s the whole experience,” Haas says. “There is love behind everything we do from the greeting to the ‘Hope to see you soon.’ We care.” When the pandemic struck New York and restaurants were limited to curbside service, Garden Cafe immediately adjusted to the new business environment. “We always had these [health] protocols in place, we didn’t have to wait for a ‘plague’ to do the right thing,” Haas says. “Garden Cafe uses food-grade sanitizers for cleaning towels; eco-green cleaning products; gloves; and we continue to be diligent in wiping, cleaning, sanitizing, and washing our hands, being sensitive to the fears of our guests and each other.” The only new protocols added were limiting staff in close spaces and having them wear masks. “We never expected we would be celebrating our fifth anniversary during a quarantine, but we did it and are doing it. We are all working so hard to show up and serve the best with love and care,” Haas says. “The support has been overwhelming—we feel the love.” Since the Hudson Valley entered Phase 2 of reopening on June 9, Garden Cafe has been serving guests onsite in the garden patio. —MD
WAIT STAFF & SERVICE WINNER RED ONION 2ND GARVAN’S 3RD TERRAPIN RESTAURANT
WATERFRONT DINING WINNER OLE SAVANNAH TABLE & BAR 2ND DIAMOND MILLS 3RD MARINER’S HARBOR
HEALTH & WELLNESS ACUPUNCTURIST WINNER NEW PALTZ COMMUNITY ACUPUNCTURE 2ND ANDREA BAROUCH-HEBB 3RD GOLDEN LIGHT ACUPUNCTURE 3RD VITAL ALCHEMY ACUPUNCTURE
BARBER SHOP WINNER UNION SHAVE 2ND PUGSLY’S BARBERSHOP 3RD A LUCKY CUT
CHIROPRACTOR WINNER DR. DAVID SMALDONE 2ND DR. JOHN BOYLE 3RD RHINEBECK CHIROPRACTIC
COUNSELOR / THERAPIST WINNER KELLI GILMORE 2ND INFINITY MENTAL HEALTH 3RD NOURISH YOUR MIND
DENTIST WINNER PINE STREET DENTAL 2ND DENTIST OFFICE OF THE HUDSON VALLEY 3RD THOMAS F CINGEL DDS
GENERAL PRACTITIONER WINNER DR. ELIZABETH COSTLEY 2ND AMY COCINA 3RD LAUREN VIGNA
GYM WINNER CORE STRENGTH FITNESS, LLC 2ND IXL HEALTH & FITNESS CLUB 3RD 30 MINUTES OF EVERYTHING
HAIR SALON WINNER HEADSPACE 2ND LUX HAIR STUDIO 3RD SUITE 124 SALON
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Though the COVID-19 pandemic caused those pints to sling a bit slower, Keegan was able to make the quick switch to take-out and home delivery. As the state reopens, Keegan says he’s got big plans to bring the taproom outdoors, converting the entire parking lot into an outdoor beer garden, complete with a bar, food trucks, and a small stage for live music. Of course, pups are permitted. “More and more people travel with their dogs, and in these uncertain times pets are a security blanket of sorts,” he says. “Dogs are a part of the family more than ever.” —MD
Wait Staff & Service
Red Onion
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Dr. Edward Decort at Better Lives Animal Hospital
Dog-Friendly Dining
Keegan Ales
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hough their beer is widely distributed, Keegan Ales is a distinctly Kingston gem—a community-centric brewpub focused on hearty beers, local bands, and good times. Not only is their taproom atmosphere inviting inside, but the brewery features an expansive outdoor patio with plenty of room to stretch your legs. Between the resident brewery dogs and visiting canines, the patio always has a furry friend or two to pet, which is why Keegan Ales was selected by readers as the top pick for Dog-Friendly Dining. “We’ve always been dog-friendly, and it has grown so that not only our patrons, but their dogs look forward to visiting,” says owner and brewmaster Tommy Keegan. “We have a very loyal local customer base who have come to know and love our two dogs, Bear and Daisy, who live here. Also, many of our customers who don’t have pets enjoy visiting us specifically to spend time with them.” But the accolades don’t stop there. Keegan Ales also nabbed the top spots for Taproom and
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Local Beer. Top brew choices include classics like Hurricane Kitty IPA, named after Keegan’s feisty grandma, and Joe Mama’s Milk, a coffee stout brewed with coffee from Monkey Joe Roasting Co.—another Kingston mainstay. But exciting new brews have become fast favorites, too, including Fun, a citra IPA, and specialty beers like fruit-based Berliner Weisse sour, aged in Widow Jane oak barrels. You’ll find it all at the brewpub on the border of Midtown and Uptown in a brick building bedecked with O+ Festival murals. “Basically, I built a clubhouse where I want to hang out,” Keegan says. “I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I do, but no pressure. I think the authenticity of Keegan Ales shines through in how we present ourselves day-to-day, and our customers recognize that. We’re proud of our reputation for being approachable. I have many female regulars who tell me Keegan Ales is one of the only pubs they feel comfortable walking into alone. Many times, we’re told that after even a first visit, people feel like a regular here. That is important to me. I got into this business to bring friends together and to make new ones, one pint at a time.”
hough face masks may now hide the friendly expressions of restaurant staff, heartcentered service is appreciated more than ever. But before restaurants were ordered to cease dine-in service—when we were fine with dining within six feet of another table—the warmth and attentiveness of hosts, servers, and other workers have been key parts of the restaurant experience. And our readers wanted to recognize the hardworking staff at fine dining establishment Red Onion in Saugerties. “We pride ourselves on exceptional service and friendly staff,” says General Manager Jeffrey Beck. “Our philosophy is to give each customer a unique Red Onion experience, whether it’s for a special anniversary meal, a casual night out, or for a private party.” What is it that makes Red Onion’s staff stand out to its devoted following, among other restaurants? “I like to think it’s our attention to detail, nonpretentious attitude, each team member’s unique personality, and relationships with the guests,” Beck says. He adds what he thinks makes a strong team member: “First, a positive, friendly demeanor. I often say I like to hire based on personality first because we can teach you everything else. That being said, food and beverage knowledge is important, and being able to know when to give attention when the patron wants it, and when to pull back when they don’t. It goes back to reading the table, and we have a very diverse clientele.” But it’s not just about customer service; how employees vibe with one another is just as vital. “Being a team player [is key],” he says. “When the place is jamming and everyone is working together, it really reflects in the guests’ experience.” Beyond claiming the top spot for service, Red Onion nabbed second place for Fancy Dinner and Steak. What does that mean in pandemic-era dining? With plans to open during Phase 3, the restaurant has removed tables to increase social distancing; added touchless soap dispensers and hand-sanitizing stations; and will be providing single-use menus, rolled silverware, wine lists on-demand; and more. “We love our community and love what we do,” Beck says. “We strive to give each customer a personalized experience with great food and service. Also, we would like to thank our loyal customers for their continued support. We are honored to be recognized.” —MD
Veterinarian
Better Lives Animal Hospital
P
et owners everywhere love their four-legged fur babies. That’s a given, as is the fact that there are veterinarians all around the world who dedicate their careers to providing the greatest possible care for all breeds of animals to the best of their abilities. And there are certainly many excellent veterinary care facilities here in the Hudson Valley. But among this year’s Chronogrammies voters, it’s Better Lives Animal Hospital in Red Hook that leads the pack. “Our motto is ‘Our patients are our pets and our clients are our family,’” says Kathleen Decort, the practice’s manager and the wife of head vet Dr. Edward Decort. “And that’s really how it feels here. Besides really getting to know the pets we see, we love getting to know our clients on a personal level: ‘How’s your grandma doing? How’s it going with those home renovations you were telling us about at the last visit?’ That wasn’t really possible at the bigger, busier animal hospital the doctor and I both worked at before we opened Better Lives.” A member of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the New York Veterinary Society with 11 years of veterinarymedicine experience, Dr. Decort opened Better Lives in 2016. Since then, the practice has become a staple of the community, nurturing a devoted client base via the expert, deeply compassionate care administered by the couple and their small but dedicated crew. With the COVID crisis upon us, however, Better Lives has needed to adapt in order to be able to keep providing its much-needed services. As of this writing, the technician and kennel attendant who normally assist the Decorts are on temporary furlough and their facility’s lobby is closed to visitors. But the clinic continues its mission, unabated, by accepting curbside dropoffs of patient animals and with the doctor conducting outdoor diagnoses on the large, easily accessible porch and through FaceTime. Dogs and cats, are, naturally, the chief focus here, but Better Lives also cares for domestic birds and wildlife. “The doctor always makes sure to educate all the pet owners we see, to explain to them—in terms that are easy to understand—what their pet’s illness is, what’s causing it, and how the treatment works,” says Kathleen. “We love to see happy faces on our clients and their pets.” —PA
Shaman
Adam Kane
T
hat’s nice!” says shaman Adam Kane when informed that our readers have chosen him for a Chronogrammie. “I tend to always be cautious. I have to keep my practice ego-free to be effective; it’s a careful dance.” Shamanic practice is not necessarily the first health and wellness modality that leaps to mind, and Kane says that’s as it should be. “If you have something going on physically, you see your doctor; if you have something going on that’s mental or emotional, see a therapist,” he says. “It’s when something is not touched by either of those
that soul work tends to excel. The art of healing and the science of medicine are both essential.” As a child, Kane saw nature spirits; his parents had the sense to accept his intuition and his vivid dreaming as gifts, and he began reading tarot professionally at 15. Vision quests and communion with his guides led him to take up further study, and his path led to Charlie “Red Hawk” Thom. In 1993, he realized that what was birthing in him was called “shamanism” and spent several years mostly outdoors, listening to our area’s mountain spirits. He’s studied with masters from Tibet and the Andes, and attained multiple certifications. Now he provides ritual and ceremonial healing and education to the community via the Shaman’s Tent, based in Saugerties. “We provide a space to explore what we cannot put words to,” Kane says. “Society has moved away from easily accessible ritual and ceremony, but it’s such an important part of being human. Ritual and ceremony can be very simple or very complex; it’s the power and focus that matters, not the pageantry, bells and whistles, although those can help us focus.” Kane says shamanism provides a useful lens on current events. “We keep outsmarting nature in an effort to avoid inconvenience, and nature keeps having to get more and more intense,” he says. “When the pandemic first hit, a Rinpoche I work with described it as ‘a hole in nature occurred around the air element,’ impacting the ability to breathe. It’s a challenging time; it helps to keep your attention toward the idea of what a harmonious world looks and feels like, without attachment to the outcome, and ask: Does this move us closer or farther away? We don’t need to know everything to do the next thing, the next small piece.” —APC Adam Kane
Chronogrammies WINNERS ORTHODONTIST WINNER EFROS ORTHODONTICS 2ND SUNSHINE ORTHODONTICS 3RD DR. VAN VLEIT
PEDIATRICIAN WINNER DR. APPEL 2ND DR CIGLIANO 3RD DR. DAVID FENNER
PILATES STUDIO WINNER RHINEBECK PILATES 2ND STUDIO24 FITNESS 3RD BREATHE STUDIO: BARRE & PILATES
REIKI PRACTITIONER WINNER KINGSTON REIKI 2ND MICHELE ZIPP 3RD MOUNTAIN WITCH HERBALS
SHAMAN WINNER ADAM KANE 2ND RIP VAN WAGONER 3RD JENN BERGERON
SPA WINNER MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE 2ND LILY’S MEDI SPA 3RD BIRCH BODY CARE
SPIRITUAL/CONTEMPLATIVE SPACE WINNER OMEGA INSTITUTE 2ND THORN PRESERVE - CATSKILL CENTER 3RD MENLA MT. RETREAT
VETERINARIAN WINNER BETTER LIVES ANIMAL HOSPITAL 2ND SAUGERTIES ANIMAL HOSPITAL 3RD HURLEY VETERINARY HOSPITAL
WELLNESS CENTER WINNER SPA 21 KINGSTON 2ND OMEGA INSTITUTE 3RD WOODSTOCK HEALING ARTS
YOGA STUDIO WINNER LITTLE BLUEBERRYY 2ND STONE WAVE YOGA 3RD VITALITY YOGA FLOW
NATURE & THE OUTDOORS BIKE SHOP WINNER OVERLOOK BICYCLES 2ND BICYCLE RACK 3RD REVOLUTION BICYCLES
BIKE TRAIL WINNER ASHOKAN RAIL TRAIL 2ND DUTCHESS RAIL TRAIL 3RD HUDSON VALLEY RAIL TRAIL
CAMPGROUND WINNER NORTH/SOUTH LAKE CAMPGROUND 2ND YOGI BEAR’S JELLYSTONE PARK 3RD KENNETH L. WILSON CAMPGROUND
HIKE WINNER MINNEWASKA STATE PARK PRESERVE 2ND MOHONK PRESERVE 3RD WALKWAY OVER THE HUDSON
OUTDOOR APPAREL & GEAR SHOP WINNER KENCO OUTFITTERS 2ND ROCK AND SNOW 3RD MOUNTAIN TOPS OUTFITTERS
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to reopen its Rhinebeck campus until spring 2021. “We’re recreating our space online, where we’re beginning more virtual learning courses,” Santoro explains. “Using Zoom and Facebook Live, we’ve been hosting workshops and the Omega Conversations series, which features some of the very best teachers we work with.” Virtual offerings are archived on the Omega website, which over time will create a rich library of resources. The institute’s mission transcends its physical location. As its website points out: “More than simply a place, Omega is a global community that awakens the best in the human spirit and cultivates the extraordinary potential that exists in us all.” —PA
Outdoor Apparel and Gear Shop
Kenco Dr. Elizabeth Costley
General Practitioner
Dr. Elizabeth Costley
D
r. Elizabeth Costley credits TV with steering her into medicine. “When I was a kid, I loved watching ‘Little House on the Prairie,’ and there was a young girl character on the show who was interested in being a doctor,” she says. “Later on, I loved ‘Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.’ Really, I’ve just always wanted to take care of people.” For Costley, that desire to help others took root locally when she opened her practice in Saugerties in 2001. Nearly two decades later, she attends to patients in her offices in Kingston and Poughkeepsie. “A lot of the patients I see in Kingston are patients from when I was in Saugerties, and people say they find me easy to talk to and that they really trust me,” Dr. Costley says. “That makes me feel really good, that I’ve been able to build up that kind of loyalty over almost 20 years.” That outstanding continuity of care has earned her a Chronogrammie for General Practitioner. Costley hails from tiny Miller Place, Long Island, which was still largely rural when she was growing up, and perhaps somewhat reminiscent of the setting on “Little House on the Prairie.” “It was still mostly farmland then and very remote, a lot like Woodstock is now,” recalls the physician, who graduated with honors from the New York College of Osteo Medicine in 1994 and specializes in family medicine. A provider with Medical Associates of the Hudson Valley, Costley cooperates with many other MAHV specialists and is affiliated with Healthalliance Hospital’s Broadway campus, Vassar Brothers Medical Center, Northern Dutchess Hospital, HealthAlliance Hospital’s Mary’s Avenue campus, and Westchester Medical Center. While COVID-19 has prevented Costley from conducting in-person appointments, her office’s implementation of telemedicine visits has allowed her to continue caring for her patients from afar. “Since we have a PPE shortage, like a lot of healthcare facilities, we’re not able to say to anyone who’s feeling ill, ‘Just come in,’ like we normally would do,” Costley explains. “[With 76 CHRONOGRAMMIES CHRONOGRAM 7/20
telemedicine] we’re able to screen patients before they come in, and then, after that, every patient who does come in gets screened again. Physicians are still getting a handle on COVID-19 as it evolves, and this way our staff has still been able to do a good job and keep our patients going.” —PA
Spiritual/Contemplative Space
Omega Institute
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n an ironic twist, the readers who voted for the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies’ as their favorite local Spiritual/Contemplative Space can’t actually visit the idyllic campus at the moment, due to COVID closures. But as anyone who’s visited can tell you, the win isn’t all that surprising. The nonprofit educational institution is situated on 250 scenic acres in Rhinebeck, that reverberate with tranquil healing energy. “[The facility] has beautiful gardens and wooded trails, as well as Long Pond Lake and green open spaces with hammocks and Adirondack chairs for guests to relax in,” says Chrissa Santoro, Omega’s external communications director. “There’s also the Sanctuary, a building with a large, open space where group meditations and classes take place. Omega is a place of peace, quiet, and solitude, but it’s also a social place with a communal dining hall where people from across the country and around the world are able to meet. Friendships, partnerships, and even many marriages have begun here.” Alongside offering attendees a spot for profound individual contemplation, Omega’s programming provides participants with tools and frameworks for spiritual healing through the nearly 400 classes it regularly presents. The strong educational facet that saw the establishment voted as the Hudson Valley’s number two Wellness Center among Chronogram readers. “Our R&R [Rest and Relaxation] Retreats, which include massages and facials, are really popular,” says Santoro. With the pandemic upon us, Omega has redoubled its internet presence, not expecting
S
ince it was opened in 1982 by Bill Kennedy and his parents, Libby and Harry Kennedy, Kenco Outfitters has been the go-to shop for many Hudson Valley locals and visitors in search of outdoor gear. And now the nearly 40-year-old business has been officially elevated to first place in the hearts of our readers and voters, with a Chronogrammie. “We’ve always been focused on having the best customer service possible and the most knowledgeable staff,” says store manager Wynter Kennedy, Bill’s son. “All of our staff members actually do the sports and activities of the departments they oversee, and they bring that experience when they help our customers.” Kenco’s massive inventory includes top-quality equipment and men’s and women’s apparel (including workwear and footwear) and gear for camping, hiking, kayaking, boating, fishing, archery, hunting, running, biking, snowboarding, and numerous other outdoor adventure activities. The store also features repair and maintenance supplies, as well as kids’ products. Fly fishing equipment is a signature element of Kenco’s branding, and the shop is an authorized Orvis dealer. Kenco’s customer commitment doesn’t end at the register. “If someone buys a kayak and they’re new to kayaking, we’re able to give them a lesson and even help them mount their new kayak on their car,” Kennedy says. “And if they need more lessons or assistance with anything later on, we’re happy to help with that, too.” After months of providing curbside pickup for online sales during the lockdown, Kenco reopened—with mask and social distancing requirements, plexiglass counter shielding, and other health protocols in place—in midJune. Owners and staff members feel fortunate that their industry supports activities that are relatively low-risk when it comes to the spread of COVID. “One of the few good things [about the closures] is that more people have more free time to do or try the outdoor activities they’ve always wanted to try,” says Kennedy, who is also stocking HempHouse sanitizer and body cleanser in-store. “The outdoors are the one place people can feel safe. It’s pretty hard to be hiking up the side of a mountain and get coronavirus.” —Peter Aaron
Chronogrammies WINNERS PARK/PRESERVE WINNER MOHONK PRESERVE 2ND MINNEWASKA STATE PARK PRESERVE 3RD CATSKILL STATE PARK
PICNIC SPOT WINNER VANDERBILT MANSION 2ND MINNEWASKA 3RD NORTH/SOUTH LAKE STATE PARK
PLACE TO PADDLE WINNER HUDSON RIVER 2ND ESOPUS BEND NATURE PRESERVE 3RD YOGI BEAR’S JELLYSTONE PARK
PUBLIC SWIMMING AREA WINNER LAKE TAGHKANIC STATE PARK 2ND MINNEWASKA STATE PARK PRESERVE 3RD NORTH/SOUTH LAKE CAMPGROUND
RAIL TRAIL WINNER ASHOKAN RAIL TRAIL 2ND WALKWAY OVER THE HUDSON 3RD HUDSON VALLEY RAIL TRAIL
SKI AREA North/South Lake Campground
WINNER HUNTER MOUNTAIN 2ND BELLEAYRE MOUNTAIN SKI CENTER 3RD WINDHAM MOUNTAIN
SUNSET SPOT
Campground
North/South Lake Campground
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proper camping trip feels like a deep draught from the refreshing waters of an alternate universe, a complete break with everyday reality. And wise Chronogram readers know exactly where to find this recharge, just half an hour from Kingston but a world away. Opened by the infamous Robert Moses in 1929 and since expanded, North/South Lake Campground is the largest camping site in the Catskills. Here, you’ll pitch your tent beneath the former site of the Catskill Mountain House, favorite haunt of artists, eccentrics, captains of industry, and three US presidents. You can hike up there, 2,250 feet above sea level, and ponder the views that drew people to stay for months at a time; on a clear day, it’s said, you can see five states. But that’s only one of the choice destinations accessible from this campground: At Artists’ Rock, for example, you can take in the vistas that inspired Thomas Cole and birthed the Hudson River School of painters. Besides the exceptional hiking (multiple trailheads are located within the campground, and it neighbors the Kaaterskill Falls trail), there are a variety of ways to have fun. The lake (formerly two separate bodies of water, hence the compound name) is an 83-acre gem of sweet mountain water, which, to anglers’ delight, is home to an abundance of chain pickerel, brown bullhead, pumpkinseed, black crappie, and largemouth bass. You can also rent a rowboat, kayak, canoe, stand-up paddleboard, or paddle boat and explore small islands. There are two beaches for swimming and sunning. This is prime bird- and wildlife-watching territory. Sit quietly and wait for the migrating hawks, geese, and loons to pass overhead; listen
past the crackle of your campfire for the call of the great horned owl. Walk gently and catch glimpses of deer, wild turkey, and black bear. All this wonderful wildness surrounds you, and yet you’re cozily ensconced in an accessible, well-run DEC campground with flush toilets, hot showers, hookups, waste management, and a solar-powered phone charging station. Hop in the car and you’re just minutes from the restaurants and shops of Hunter. So pack a cool shirt and spend an afternoon playing tourist, then retreat to your fire pit under the stars. Rip Van Winkle never had it so good. —APC
WINNER WALKWAY OVER THE HUDSON 2ND MINNEWASKA STATE PARK PRESERVE 2ND SCENIC HUDSON’S POETS’ WALK PARK
Picnic Spot
BUTCHER
Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site
W
hen it comes to picnicking, the Hudson Valley is the mother lode, with grassy knolls and emerald lawns aplenty. And we suspect that this socially distant pastoral pastime will be at its peak this summer, as folks have had months to perfect the art of the takeout feast (not to mention all that practice cooking). But a good spread needs a good view to match. Readers have given the Chronogrammie for most cherished picnic spot to the Vanderbilt Mansion, a stunning hangout smack in the middle of Millionaire’s Row, offering panoramic Hudson River and Catskills views and surroundings that were once the exclusive domain of Gilded Age aristocrats. What better backdrop for an al fresco meal, whether it’s a takeout lobster bake with all the trimmings or a simple supper of bread, fruit, and cheese? Frederick Vanderbilt spent a ton of money establishing his Beaux Arts mansion; now it’s available to all of us, sunup to sundown, seven days a week, all year-round, free of charge and
RETAIL ANTIQUE SHOP WINNER NEWBURGH VINTAGE EMPORIUM 2ND ANTIQUES ON MAIN 2ND KINGSTON CONSIGNMENTS
BOOKSTORE WINNER ROUGH DRAFT BAR & BOOKS 2ND INQUIRING MIND BOOKSTORE & CAFE 3RD OBLONG BOOKS & MUSIC [RHINEBECK]
WINNER SMOKE HOUSE OF THE CATSKILLS 2ND ADAMS FAIRACRE FARMS 3RD APPLESTONE MEAT CO.
CBD PRODUCT WINNER HARNEY AND SONS 2ND THE LEAF NY 3RD WOODS & MEADOW
CHEESE SHOP WINNER ADAMS FAIRACRE FARMS 2ND CHEESE LOUISE 3RD THE BIG CHEESE
CHOCOLATIER WINNER KRAUSE’S CHOCOLATES 2ND ALPS SWEET SHOP 3RD LAGUSTA’S LUSCIOUS
COFFEE SHOP WINNER ROUGH DRAFT BAR & BOOKS 2ND MONKEY JOE ROASTING COMPANY 3RD THE CRAFTED KUP
FISHMONGER WINNER ADAMS FAIRACRE FARMS 2ND GADALETO’S SEAFOOD MARKET 3RD SEA DELI
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Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site
with gratis parking to boot. (You can even bring your leashed dog.) The Hyde Park location means you’re minutes from some of the world’s finest chefs. Call in an order to a Culinary Institute outpost or your favorite Rhinebeck eatery, and you’ll be settling onto your checkered blanket while the food’s still hot. The property was obtained for the National Park Service by neighboring millionaire Franklin Delano Roosevelt upon Vanderbilt’s death in 1938. Its 211 acres of park land include centuries-old trees, stunning Hudson River and Catskill Mountain views, and terraced Italianstyle gardens maintained by the volunteers of the Frederick William Vanderbilt Garden Association, which formed to rescue the grand grounds from ruin in 1984. Thanks to the volunteers, the garden features mass after mass of brilliant annuals, thriving perennials, and two tiers of roses. There are multiple fountains, statues, shady arbors, and a reflecting pool where the statue Barefoot Kate has dipped her marble toe since 1902. Right
now, early July, is the perfect time for a stroll through the Rose Garden’s blooms down to the bank of the Crum Elbow Creek. Two-thousand rose bushes abloom? This, friends, is the good life indeed. —APC
Remote Work Spot
Rough Draft
O
pened just over two years ago, Rough Draft, among our readers, decisively topped three of the four Chronogrammies categories it was nominated for, taking the lead slots in the Bookstore, Coffeeshop, and Remote Work Spot groupings (and second prize in the bar/ restaurant Beer List category). But even before Amanda and Anthony Stromoski took over the historic stone building in Kingston’s Stockade District, their making it a remote-work-friendly environment was key. “That has always been a big part of our business model,” Amanda says about Rough Draft, whose high-powered wireless internet
access makes it a preferred locale for many. “I was a freelancer myself before we opened the store, and I’d always wanted to create the kind of place I’d like to have. We had a sense that other people were looking for something like this in the neighborhood, and we’ve been really happy to find out we were right.” Knowing that the Hudson Valley is home to many other exceptional booksellers, the Stromoskis are both proud and humbled to have been tapped as 2020’s fave local bookstore by Chronogram readers. So how does the couple decide what titles fill their voluminous shelves? “We base a lot of the choices on what our regulars are recommending or asking for,” says Amanda. “We try to choose books that seem like they would do well in the community, topics that would most appeal to the people who live here.” Coffee, of course, is the perfect companion for reading or screen time. So Rough Draft’s owners are hyperattentive when selecting the beans they brew, as well as the teas and other beverages they serve. “We definitely put a lot of attention into the coffee and everything else we serve at the bar, but that’s only part of it,” offers Anthony. “All of our baristas always try to be really welcoming.” The store moved quickly to adapt to COVID-19, implementing beverage and book deliveries along with curbside pickup service and stepping up their online book market while shuttered. Now reopen for limited walk-in purchases and prepping for protocoladherent seating, the shop is cosponsoring with the Kingston City School District for this month’s launch of Kingston Reads, an initiative encouraging all members of the community to read the same book and gather online for discussions about the topics within. First book up: Ijeoma Oluo’s So You Want to Talk About Race. —PA
Grocery Store
Adams Fairacre Farms
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Rough Draft
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t’s not such a shock that Chronogram readers voted Adams Fairacre Farms their favorite Hudson Valley grocery store. The family-owned franchise, which last year celebrated its 100th anniversary, is beloved for its peerless selection
Chronogrammies WINNERS FOOTWEAR STORE WINNER MONTANO’S SHOE STORE 2ND PEGASUS COMFORT FOOTWEAR 3RD DSW DESIGNER SHOE WAREHOUSE
The pizza shop at Adam’s Fairacre Farms
GIFT STORE WINNER BOP TO TOTTOM 2ND PAPER TRAIL 3RD HANDMADE AND MORE
GROCERY STORE WINNER ADAMS FAIRACRE FARMS 2ND MOTHER EARTH’S STOREHOUSE 3RD ALDI
HEALTH FOOD STORE WINNER MOTHER EARTH’S STOREHOUSE 2ND SUNFLOWER NATURAL FOODS MARKET 3RD HEALTH & NUTRITION CENTER
RECORD STORE WINNER DARKSIDE RECORDS 2ND RHINO RECORDS 3RD WOODSTOCK MUSIC SHOP
REMOTE WORK SPOT WINNER ROUGH DRAFT BAR & BOOKS 2ND BEAHIVE BEACON 3RD ONE EPIC PLACE
TATTOO PARLOR WINNER GRACELAND TATTOO 2ND HUDSON VALLEY TATTOO COMPANY 3RD QUEEN CITY TATTOO
WINE SHOP WINNER ARLINGTON WINE & LIQUOR 2ND FOX & HOUND WINE & SPIRITS 3RD NEIGHBORHOOD WINE & SPIRITS
SHELTER BED & BREAKFAST
of just-picked produce, fresh meats, dairy items, garden products, and other staples, as well as its knowledgeable, helpful staff and the downhome shopping experience to be found at its Poughkeepsie, Kingston, Wappinger, and Newburgh locations. In addition to the above, among readers Adams also netted the number one slots for fishmonger and cheese shop and carved out a second-place spot in the local butcher category. “Adams tries to provide a better customer experience along with better-quality products at fair prices,” says Adams’s marketing director, Wendy Troncone. “We are known for our produce, but we offer so many other unique and hard-to-find items within all our departments. Customers will constantly comment about how they were so happy to find a grocery item or a plant they have been unable to find anywhere else. Also, many of our grocery items are in our stores because a customer asked us to carry them, so you could say we’ve built our stores based on our customers.” The building of those stores began in 1919, when farmer Ralph A. Adams and his wife, Mary Rogers Adams, acquired 50 acres of Dutchess County farmland. They soon started selling their fresh produce to local shops, and
by the early 1930s the roadside farmstand they ran with their four children was a highly successful area institution. Today the small chain is overseen by Ralph and Mary’s grandsons, Patrick and Steven Adams. Since the early stages of the COVID-19 situation, Adams has been following local and national reports on the virus and looking to the CDC, the WHO, and other public health agencies for guidance. Its stores were quick to implement the use of face masks, social distancing, and occupancy limits among employees and customers, along with other protocol-compliant adjustments. As the Adams family and their staff and customers look to the relaxing of state retail guidelines, the firm is finishing up expansion renovations to some of its Kingston food departments and looking ahead to the opening of a Middletown location. “I believe Adams has been around for so long (and an area destination) because we are so customer centric, and because of the hard work of our employees,” says Troncone. “Adams is a familyowned business that doesn’t have a corporate feel, with employees who always seem happy and have stayed a long time. We love to support our community and it is simply good fortune.” —PA
WINNER THE FORSYTH B&B 2ND HOMESTEAD AT CATSKILL ANIMAL SANCTUARY 3RD BUTTERMILK FALLS INN & SPA
HOTEL WINNER MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE 2ND BUTTERMILK FALLS INN & SPA 3RD EMERSON RESORT & SPA
RESORT WINNER MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE 2ND EMERSON RESORT AND SPA 3RD ROCKING HORSE RANCH RESORT
WEDDINGS ALL-IN-ONE WEDDING VENUE WINNER RED MAPLE VINEYARD 2ND MOHONK MOUNTAIN HOUSE 3RD DIAMOND MILLS HOTEL & TAVERN
CATERER WINNER AGNES DEVEREUX CATERING 2ND LOLA’S CAFE 3RD FEAST AT ROUND HILL
DIY VENUE WINNER RED MAPLE VINEYARD 2ND NOSTRANO VINEYARDS 3RD OZ FARM
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Red Maple Vineyard Photo: Arius Photography
Wedding Venue
Red Maple Vineyard
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hether you’re going to be showing up early in sweats to do your own floral arranging or you want a seamless, stress-free wedding package where you don’t have to lift a finger, our readers concur: Red Maple Vineyard is a fabulous place to tie the knot. “It’s definitely a magical spot,” says Shay Stone, who came home from wandering the globe to help her parents transform the West Park winery, a one-time dairy farm operated by the Christian Brothers, into a boutique wedding venue. “It’s a breathtaking spot in the first place, and we’ve renovated and transformed it.” Stone’s parents, Gary and Liz, met as students at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. “They started their own catering company when I was five, so I grew up around events and hospitality,” she recalls. “As they got into doing weddings, they were looking to expand. They found this lovely old dairy-farm-turned-winery where a guy named Lou had been growing Chardonnay grapes for 20 years and breathed new life into the land.” The family replanted the vineyard and added a three-acre vegetable garden, which supplies much of the produce for catered onsite events. “We source as much as we can from right here on the property, from side dishes to the eggs for the wedding cakes,” Stone says. “This year we’re launching our wine and cider. We’re excited to 80 CHRONOGRAMMIES CHRONOGRAM 7/20
see what people think!” The cider is made onsite with apples from neighboring Maynard Farms. And maple sap from the property’s trees is made into craft beer at Kingston’s Great Life Brewing and then served at events. Full circle. The ideal wedding is about so much more than the sum of its parts, and the hospitality at Red Maple Vineyard is all sincerity, sweetness, and warmth, letting couples feel fully at home on their special day. “We’re all about giving people the freedom to create,” says Stone. “We’ve got the venue, the catering, the rentals and the talent to make it all seamless for you. It’s a labor of love, and it shows in every way.” Future couples will enjoy a new reception center designed to “bring the outdoors in,” along with the venue’s commitment to zero food waste and their superb Hudson Valley rusticchic backdrops. “Our whole philosophy, from gardening to hospitality, is regenerative,” says Stone. “It’s all about positive creative energy. We’re so grateful to our team and our couples and glad to be part of this community.” —APC
Hotel
Mohonk Mountain House
A
lthough the Shawangunk Mountains are certainly ripe with natural beauty, the Mohonk Mountain House might be one of its most iconic wonders—and our readers agree. (Mohonk also took home top honors in the
Resort and Spa categories, as well as second place in the Buffet category.) Aside from the lavish meals (including a spot of afternoon tea) that come with a stay at the resort, or the awardwinning spa equipped with a eucalyptus steam room and dry rock sauna, this mountain top getaway also offers an abundance of exhilarating outdoor activities to choose from. Purchased by the Smiley family in 1869, what was originally a 10-room inn on Lake Mohonk was soon transformed into the beloved 259room, Victorian castle that is now the Mohonk Mountain House. Since its genesis, the iconic Mountain House has been visited by several world-renowned artists, musicians, and actors— as well as five US presidents. Even Hollywood was drawn to the mountain top retreat, with eight productions using Mohonk as their backdrop—including Amazon Prime’s “Upload” and Showtime’s “Billions.” The fifth season of “Billions” not only featured Mohonk in one of their episodes, but the actors also stayed at the resort overnight during their tight, two-day filming schedule. The resort is even rumored to have been the inspiration for Stephen King’s novel The Shining, which was later adapted into the 1980 cult classic film starring Jack Nicholson. Although typically open all year round, the Mountain House had to close for a short period of time due to the spread of COVID-19. As soon as Mohonk Mountain House announced their anticipated June 15 opening, their phones
Mohonk Mountain House
Chronogrammies WINNERS FLORIST WINNER THE GREEN COTTAGE 2ND FERN AND FAWN FLOWERS 3RD PETALOS FLORAL DESIGN
OFFICIANT WINNER PASTOR TOBIAS ANDERSON 2ND PUJA THOMPSON 3RD MICHELE ZIPP
RENTAL COMPANY WINNER DURANTS PARTY RENTALS 2ND PARKED PROSECCO 3RD UPSTATE JAMBOREE GAME RENTALS
WEDDING CAKE MAKER WINNER THE PASTRY GARDEN 2ND AGNES DEVEREUX CATERING 3RD DEISING’S
WEDDING DJ WINNER DJ FE 2ND BRYAN JUNIOR DNA 3RD JTD PRODUCTIONS - DAVE LEONARD
WEDDING/EVENT PLANNER lit up and online inquiries poured in. Those who’ve made the resort an annual tradition should expect a few changes this summer. “Mohonk will be implementing a number of new protocols to protect and prioritize the health and safety of staff and guests,” explains the resort’s president, Eric Gullickson. “Some of these protocols include wellness screenings at the Gatehouse, physical distancing, increased sanitization of the entire property—especially at high touch-point areas, face-mask requirements, takeout options, and modified activities, such as moving mindfulness and fitness programs outdoors.” Luckily, the majority of Mohonk’s outdoor activities allow for social distancing, meaning you can still explore the 85 miles of hiking trails or take a refreshing dip in Lake Mohonk without worrying about bumping into other guests. —Abby Foster
Wedding Officiant
Pastor Tobias Anderson
P
astor Tobias Anderson of Redeemer Lutheran Church in New Paltz is our top readers’ pick as Wedding Officiant, and it’s obvious how that might be when one first arrives at the church’s website and finds “Let us then pursue what makes for peace and mutual upbuilding.” (Romans 14:19) front and center. After all, a Mutual Upbuilding Society makes a lovely definition of marriage, church, and what we’d all like to be building every which way. Anderson’s pastoral vision extends beyond any one sacrament or denomination. He’s out to spread that peace and mutual upbuilding everywhere. “The first thing anyone needs to know about me is that I believe in God’s message of radical inclusion,” he says. “My mission is always to share Christ’s welcome, which brings all into the circle of care, equality, and justice. And, good golly, in this world we have just got to link arms whenever we can, across all the divisions, to bring down hunger and racism and labels.”
That philosophy makes a fine setting for a gem of a marriage sacrament, and Anderson says people appreciate his focus on love writ large. “I strive to help the couple stay grounded in what’s most important: devotion and commitment,” he says. “And when I’m part of a wedding, the public celebration of their commitment to lifelong love, the joining together is not just for themselves. It’s for the good of the whole world, so that the goodness of each of our lives can be amplified and uplifted.” Anderson loves officiating just as much as marrying couples love his way with it. “It’s beautiful to watch people join their lives,” he says. “I love wedding days. I like to include words of welcome that set everyone there at ease: ‘Whatever tradition you come from, we’re connected today to surround the couple with love.’ I also have a good sense of humor, which can defuse stress. Stress should never overshadow the joy.” —APC Pastor Tobias Anderson
WINNER PARTY STAFFING, INC - DANIELLE WHITMARSH 2ND A CHARMED AFFAIR 3RD WYLDE ROSE EVENTS
Birth of the Chronogrammies When I first started working at Chronogram in 2012, I was sitting in Outdated cafe chatting with Jason and Amara about what new initiatives I could bring to the organization. One of the first brainstorms I had was for a readers’ choice awards called (cue radio announcer voice) The Chronogrammies! It took eight years, but after many successful dance parties, block parties, and lots of research, we finally brought one of my original brainstorms to life. I am so grateful to our 20,000 readers who participated in this year’s awards, and the over 4,400 businesses who were nominated. The Chronogrammies truly exceeded my wildest expectations. Although this year didn’t go exactly as planned (thanks COVID-19), I couldn’t be happier with how we were able to create a platform for our readers to highlight the local businesses that make up the fabric of our Hudson Valley region—especially when these businesses needed it most. Congratulations to our winners! Can’t wait to make Chronogrammies bigger and better next year. —Samantha Liotta
7/20 CHRONOGRAM CHRONOGRAMMIES 81
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COVID-19
COMMUNITY RESPONSE
Art Omi’s Camp-in-a-Box
COVID-19 COMMUNITY RESPONSE
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lthough the effects of COVID-19 have been undeniably horrific and the new paradigm of protocols it’s borne has disrupted so many of our daily lives, it’s also brought out the best in a lot of us. Case in point: the many exemplary arts organizations, social advocacy groups, and independent businesses right here in the Hudson Valley who have risen to the occasion to help out in whatever ways they can. Still Open HV is a free online directory of area businesses that have been open while the New York State on PAUSE order has been in effect. The brainchild of local web designers Jeff Severson and Sheila Gilday and web marketer
Kati Haynes, it’s a resource for restaurants, coffeeshops, retailers, and other businesses needing to let the public know that they’re running and offer updates on protocol-related operations and related links. “We have a lot of friends in the business community and we really wanted to do something to connect consumers to businesses,” says Severson. “At this point we have over 750 businesses listed, and we’re still taking listing requests.” Craft distillers Gardiner Liquid Mercantile reopened to patrons in mid-June after keeping their spirits flowing via deliveries and curbside pickups of their beer, wine, cider, bottled cocktails and other beverages and food. Owner Gable Erenzo and his crew also heeded
the call by manufacturing FDA-approved hand sanitizer (free in eight-ounce size to those unable to pay). Since 2000, the Woodstock Film Festival has attracted thousands of movie buffs and film industry figures to Ulster County to attend screenings, seminars, and other events held as part of the internationally recognized gathering. And, according to cofounder Meira Blaustein, the festival is still planned for September 13 through October 4, although its parent organization is still formulating the means of presenting it. “We’ve been hosting a lot of online programming, such as biweekly conversations with filmmakers and a free weekly screening and Q&A with a 7/20 CHRONOGRAM CHRONOGRAMMIES 83
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WINNERS related filmmaker or film industry person,” says Blaustein. “This month, we’re launching our Youth Film Lab, to get free iPads with filmediting software to students so they can make films to show in the festival.” Also in Woodstock, as well as in Rhinebeck, is the family-ownedand-operated Sunflower Natural Foods Market, opened in 1978. In addition to implementing curbside pickup and delivery options, both of its clean, well-stocked locations are up and running with adjusted hours (see website for updates) that include a special hour for senior shoppers, 9 to 10am, Mondays through Fridays. Many local citizens have also utilized the Kingston Frontline Mental Health helpline, which was launched by the O+ organization and Samadhi recovery and outreach center. The 24hour service provides free, confidential mental health assistance for essential workers and others. Another helpful hotline is that of the Kingston Emergency Food Collaborative, which went live in March and is likewise open around the clock. Established to aid in getting food and groceries to households in need across the Kingston School District, the service works in tandem with the Kingston YMCA, People’s Place, Family of Woodstock, and Project Resilience. Feeding the underserved during the tragedy has also been part of the recent actions of Hudson River Housing, a Dutchess County-based organization founded in the 1970s to strengthen communities by helping families and individuals secure safe, affordable housing and provide support through education and other services. “There’s been a really high demand for food, so we’ve been focused on going out into the community and opening kitchens getting meals to people who need them,” says Elizabeth Celaya, HRH’s director of strategic initiatives. “With so many people not working now, rent relief is also a major issue, so we’ve been working to set up an emergency response rent relief fund. We’ve had more than 210 applications for rent assistance since opening the online application process on May 1.” The creative community has certainly been doing its part to adapt and assist in its own imaginative ways over the course of the ordeal. Art Omi, the 120-acre sculpture and architecture park in Columbia County, has opened its panoramic premises to individuals and small groups in need of some artistic distraction. “We recently installed a new, untitled piece by the sculptor Bianca Beck that’s really colorful and joyful,” says Omi’s executive director, Ruth Adams. “We’re also opening the gallery for some new exhibitions, with timed entries for viewers.” One of the most quietly humbling examples of native response to the pandemic has been the formation of the NY Masked COVID-19 Avengers. With volunteers throughout the Hudson Valley, the Avengers have safely handmade more than 18,000 face masks, which they’ve then distributed to healthcare workers and at-risk populations. —PA
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7/20 CHRONOGRAM CHRONOGRAMMIES 85
music Bobby Previte/Jamie Saft/Nels Cline Music from the Early 21st Century (RareNoise Records) RareNoiseRecords.com
It’s a deceptively plainspoken title for an album of far-reaching live improvisation, Music from the Early 21st Century. But before you hit play, there are context clues that this is no generic exercise. The song titles are words of recent coinage, words that would be perplexing to folks in even the later years of the previous century: “Photobomb,” “Parkour,” “Flash Mob.” It’s a wry specificity, a zoomed-in glimpse, that can be juxtaposed with the album-cover art, a shot from the Hubble telescope caputuring the earlist image of our universe yet. Mammoth and minute. Powerful and precise. Fields and filigree. This is a heavy, delicate, and soaring experience. Kerhonkson keyboardist Jamie Saft’s playing on Hammond organ, Fender Rhodes piano, and MiniMoog synthesizer ranges from deep tidal to Deep Purple; Claverack drummer Previte’s playing is polyglot percussion, varied and fluent; and Nels Cline’s (Wilco) guitar shimmers, skronks, and sings. And, again, this was recorded live—LIVE—over a four-day stretch of gigs in 2019 at venues in Beacon, Hudson, New York City, and Pennsylvania. The shred heads, free-jazz freaks, and new-music nerds in attendance must all have been ecstatic. I didn’t see any of these shows, so I’ve got a retroactive and recent term to contribute to the setlist: “FOMO” (Fear of Missing Out). —John Rodat
Aliza Hava Natural State
Pitchfork Militia Grass or Gravel?
Robert Burke Warren Redheaded Friend
(Independent) Alizahava.com
(Independent) Pitchforkmilitia1.bandcamp.com
(Independent) Robertburkewarren.bandcamp.com
“I ain’t livin’ as a whole, locking the door to my soul,” belts New Paltz expat Aliza Hava. Hava’s had fervent messages of activism and brotherhood behind her ardent, affecting, and ironclad cry since arriving on the scene around 2000. She struggles with the awakening and elevation of humanity while chasing a state of grace that inspires catchy earworms (e.g., the title track’s carefree refrain of “la de da da”). Her 2005 debut showcased her immense talents as a soulful songwriter, mighty vocalist, and accomplished guitarist, comfortably slipping her into a powerhouse slot next to legends like Ani DiFranco and Melissa Etheridge. With Natural State, she maintains the same level of folk/ rock/pop potency with ballads for paramours (“Moonflower,” “Faerietale”), sweet vocal harmonies over radioready spirit-pop (“Destiny”), and a rerecorded “Rise,” a perennial anthem mulled by time, yet changeless in its raw conviction. Join her weekly on Facebook for live performances to pandemic-benefit charities. —Haviland S Nichols
Peter Head gave himself a challenge: Write 14 songs in 14 days. Head, the guitar slinger and vocalist of Palenville stalwarts Pitchfork Militia made good use of the fortnight on the band’s latest album. Abetted by mates Karl Krause (bass) and Joe P. Morgan (drums), the songs are loosely inspired by classic comic strips. Leadoff track “Family Circus” is driven by distorted guitar and a thudding bassline. Head gives a withering review of the square, Middle American family in the round-bordered comic strip: “You know those stupid kids were always wetting the bed!” The band’s trademark blend of punk, country, rock, and blues is on full tilt, whether, lusting after an intrepid reporter in “Brenda Star,” giving the war orphan “Dondi” a speed twang soundtrack, or lending some staccato riffing to the pipe-smoking outdoorsman of “Mark Trail.” — Jeremy Schwartz
Robert Burke Warren’s first solo album in 16 years is a coming-of-age autobiographical song cycle dedicated in large part to his teenage friendship with Todd Butler, the title character. The two grew up in Atlanta, fatherless for the most part, running around on their own as “Latchkey Refugees,” as one song puts it. Interspersing the album with short, spoken-word bits, Warren—who calls Phoenicia home—performs the incisive material live as a one-man show that combines words and music. His pitch-perfect musical memoir, produced by Rosendale-based Grammy winner Dean Jones, works not only as a sensitive tribute to that slightly older friend who opened new worlds to him but also as a musical portrait of their time. If songs variously channel Bowie, Dylan, the Cars, and Joni Mitchell, that’s because they were the soundtrack of the multitalented Warren’s youth and his creative wellspring. —Seth Rogovoy
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books Holy Water In My Scotch Suzanne Boylston Cusack AUSTIN MACAULEY, 2020, $7.95
Suzanne Boylston Cusack found herself in the fastpaced marketing world in New York City at the tender age of 18. In her moving memoir, she recounts the toxic drinking culture that she found herself in, and how she inevitably began following in her alcoholic father’s footsteps. When her mother, a devout Catholic who believed in miracles, noticed her daughter’s worsening addiction, she began sneaking drops of holy water into her drinks. Shortly after, the author found Alcoholics Anonymous and got sober. In 1973, Boylston Cusack and her husband Jim Cusack founded Villa Veritas, moving the addiction recovery center to its present location in Kerhonkson in 1978.
History on Our Plate Peter Rose SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2020, $9.95
Peter Rose explores the traditional Dutch recipes that were cooked in the Hudson Valley by its early European settlers. From the middle ages to the 17th century, Rose covers everything from traditional salads to custards and savory dishes that traveled from the Netherlands to the Dutch colony in New York. Rose, author of The Sensible Cook: Dutch Foodways in the Old and New World, is the region’s foremost historian of Dutch Colonial cuisine. History on Our Plate offers 72 recipes adapted for the modern kitchen. All that’s needed to replicate these historic dishes is a stovetop or fireplace.
Anxiety Insights What Gets to Us and What Gets Us Through Lori Maney Lentini, MS and Dr. Nicole Lentini LITTLE PINK PRESS, 2020, $14.95
Most consider the current COVID-19 pandemic a health crisis, but the virus not only ravages the body; experts worry that this unprecedented time of crisis is also having a detrimental effect on our mental health. Mother and daughter mental health advocates Lori Maney Lentini, MS and Dr. Nicole Lentini use their personal experience of a daughter’s struggle with severe anxiety and her mother’s quest to help her manage it in order to provide insights and hope for those struggling with an increased sense of stress and anxiety during this time.
Fargo Burns Kos Kostmayer DR. CICERO BOOKS, 2020, $15
Garrison resident Kos Kostmayer explores the turbulence in American society during the Vietnam War through the lens of 32-year-old Fargo Burns. Kostmayer’s protagonist has gone mad, heaving most of his possessions out a 12th-story window in Manhattan. He finds himself in a mental hospital, where he becomes convinced that he has been turned into a dog and that his psychiatrist is Virginia Woolf. To make matters worse, he starts an affair with the girlfriend of a professional killer. A madcap satire, Burns must confront his own demons as well as those of a country tearing itself apart.
Cooking with Marika: Clean Cuisine from an Estonian Farm Marika Blossfeldt DELICIOUS NUTRITION, 2020, $ 38.99
Inspired by the culinary philosophy of her native country of Estonia, Beacon-based chef and author Marika Blossfeldt’s latest cookbook features non-doctrinaire recipes that promote a deeper understanding of how food affects us. There’s no white sugar or white flour here, but plenty of healthy Estonian fare like sourdough bread and lacto-fermented vegetables. Her nutritional recipes are replete with a plethora of health benefits like boosting immunity, maintaining a healthy digestive tract, preventing inflammation, and weight loss. To Blossfeldt, the biggest dietary change is one of awareness, paying attention when we shop for our food and prepare it healthfully. —Abby Foster
NOTHING CAN HURT YOU Nicola Maye Goldberg BLOOMSBURY PUBLISHING, 2020, $26
On a winter’s night in 1997, a housewife walking in the woods finds the body of Sara Morgan, a young college student who’s been brutally murdered. Almost immediately, Sara’s longtime boyfriend Blake confesses, pleads temporary insanity, and spends two months in a mental hospital before (more or less) walking free. In Bard alum Nicola Maye Goldberg’s debut novel, the mystery at the heart of so many “dead girl” stories (the whodunit) feels less important than exploring the girl herself, the ways her death affected those around her, and how the world allows for unending violence against women. Launching itself backward and forward in time, the novel dedicates each chapter to a different voice. The 12 points of view (most of which are women’s) form a kaleidoscopic view into the ways violence endures long after the act. Not only how it cleaves the world into the before and the after, but the way it continues to impose itself; the silence, fear, and rage it leaves in its wake. Dedicating just a few dozen pages to each, Goldberg manages to confidently sketch whole, complex characters that make the book feel far bigger than its 240 pages. The characters, whose lives sometimes intersect, all touch on Sara (either as a person or a true crime case) and illuminate the ways she’s now part of the larger story: the one where women are hurt by men who don’t always atone, repent, or pay for what they’ve done. Juliet, a local Hudson Valley reporter, is covering two stories—Sara’s murder and the trial of serial killer John Logan (the “Kingston Killer”)—and can’t seem to shake the feeling that they are related. Not in the literal sense, but in that the killings were committed in a society inured to gender-based violence. Prosecutor Tracy, who lives with her sister Erin, decided to go into law after her sister was raped by three teenage boys; she keeps tabs on the men via internet stalking. Sara’s half-sister Luna cons her way into a job as the nanny for Ruby, Blake’s daughter. Growing up with no memories of her dead sister, Luna is looking for answers where there may not be any; she’s looking for justice when it may not exist. In focusing on Sara’s murder, the novel also touches on the ways certain victims are ignored or even blamed for what was done to them. While thinking about why there’s endless empathy for the Saras of the world but not John Logan’s victims, Juliet says: “At a certain point, you realize the world is so bad, that it’s easier to pretend that people deserve the terrible things that befall them. That way, at least, you can pretend that you are safe.” Goldberg renders these painful truths with tenderness, dark humor, and a simmering rage. —Carolyn Quimby 7/20 CHRONOGRAM BOOKS 87
poetry
EDITED BY Phillip X Levine
The Winds of More
Self Quarantine
Raising a toast
The evergreens by the ocean shore Bend to greet the winds of More They bow to Nature’s greatest force Showing themselves no remorse Before the gales of More say “Hello” She gives the trees a special test She blows their branches from the East to the West If they last, she greets them well If not, well only time will tell
Threat consumed the wood The squirrel will not leave the tree Acorns piled high
It took a long while to fully taste The sweetness, the bitterness Of the country that welcomed me, Healed me with freedom, Nourished me with opportunity, Flung wide open doors to the future.
—Destiny Dubetsky (11 years) The world is burning like wildfire, Flames of conflict climbing higher. Some are sick and others dying, It doesn’t seem like we’re even trying. The leaders who should guide us are looking to divide us, Those who swore to serve and protect, Are not worthy of our respect. I’m trapped at home and can only wait, Is this what they meant by “make America great”?
—Harold Porr Morning Report: 2 April 2020 Song Sparrows are already chorusing when we step outside answered quickly by House Finches trilling upward toward the sky, while a Red-Bellied Woodpecker whinnies in the distance. I follow the dog through the yard as a Mockingbird runs through its repertoire drowning out all the other birds except the Blue Jays. Shadows of Crows follow us as we head inside.
—Kelly Kalleberg (12 years)
—Gregory Luce
The Time Life Was Put on Hold
And the world stilled. And we heard the birds’ voices. Like never before.
The time life was put on hold, A virus that directed toward the old, We were all instructed to stay at home, School work is now done on Chrome, I can’t go to school to see all my friends, And it’s like this quarantine never ends, No more getting ready to ride the buses, Or working up courage to talk to my crushes, No more volleyball practice from 7 to 9, To spike the ball and call it mine, I’m missing softball tryouts because of this, Wow do I have a lot of things to miss, We’re losing people to COVID-19, But I always try to keep smiling, They say if you go out stay 6 feet apart, But some people aren’t that smart, The virus is spreading and people are dying, I know people think so but the government ain’t lying, More than 1,000,000 people are diagnosed more each day, So stay home and far away, I’m telling you it’s not worth it to go out, This is not the right way to go about, If you want quarantine to last longer fine, Just know the things you’re taking that are mine, Like school, friends, sports, and guys, Some of us want to go back to living our lives, No gatherings of 10 people or more, Unless you absolutely have to attend the store If you go out wear a mask it ain’t that hard, You can literally just get exercise in your yard, Healthcare workers are working hard like my mom, Don’t go to panic you can just stay calm, There’s a quote going around we need to discuss, “We stay here for you so stay home for us!” This is the time life was put on hold, Wow what a story to be futuristically told. —Emily Hadden (13 years)
88 POETRY CHRONOGRAM 7/20
—Carolyn Corbett
But I can no longer deny: Here, too, brutality partners with fear; Here and now they brew their recipe— The same acrid hooch that intoxicated My distant birthplace. Wonder, tenderness, celebration Are laced with that familiar poison. So what do I do with my gratitude, With its sweetness that spills over the brim? Pour enough of it out to make room For the bitterness, the sorrow, The shame of witnessing What is being done to “them” In the name of “us”? Or do I keep the bile In a different container From the honey?
Empty house waiting I call the birds to come to me through open windows
How do I raise my toast? How do I drink it? A sip from this cup, a sip from that one? Or do I take it in together: The nectar and the venom?
—Billy Internicola
—Yana Kane
Today the dense fog that kept walking between us is keeping distance.
One Night in America
—Sharon Rousseau Antsy pantsy rigmarole Darting eyes and heavy soul Pick it up to put it down Empty street and empty town Looking down at gnarly toes Stale pajamas prick the nose Dead end travels how to cope Trust in rainbows, love and hope —Eileen Bailey Another Day into the mirror say i “hello, how are you” silence... goodnight You —Suzanne Chika
The first time I noticed my hands trembling, I was still a young man, just returned from a war, and even pressing palms and all ten fingers against a window pane to steady them, I knew that like slither-quick rodenteating snakes in swamp-black water or a sudden shiver in the hang of moss, it would always be there, that fear, quaking in each next step, ready to pounce and remind me. So to those now walking war’s trails— I hope you survive the war and the coming home, especially you young Black veterans, pulled over one night in America, white policemen pointing their flashlights in your window… —Richard Levine
Storage
We Love the Neighbors
The Time I Pulled the Trigger
Locked in and locked away in here somewhere did we pour love into the airtight container along with the 10 kilos of rice?
Every time there is a noise in the hallway, I feed my dog a treat. “We love the neighbors,” I say. “We love them. We love the mailman. We love how the mailman brings us mail.”
You’re chasing me home from school; I know what you think of me is true. I live here too, but I run fast and I’m betting my life I can outrun you
Or did we freeze it with the leftover pork fat? If heated on the stove will it soften like butter or will it smoke and ruin dinner? If we ever return to how it was, to movies and arcades and a cup of coffee in a noisy cafe will we remember why we held hands or will we misplace it under a pile of unworn clothes and canned goods nearing expiration? —Anne Carly Abad Overheard at the Diner We’ll never know. That’s the whole thing about it. We’ll never know. We’ll just. Never. Know. —George J. Searles imposed distance the only shaking hands among those alone —Noel Sloboda Ped Xing Drivers scampering by Edging into the crosswalk, I refuse to yield. —Anthony Grillo Fishing On the bank slender cattails reach out and tall grasses with clouds of swirling insects bite the air.
He looks at me quizzically. He’s not convinced, but sometimes he’ll swallow a woof for a Cheerio. Later, when we’re trying to sleep, a man talks on his phone in Spanish in the alley beside our bedroom window. I half-listen to his half of the conversation, wondering if it counts as language practice. When I feel a bark rise up in my throat, I think instead: We love the neighbors. And it works. —Abigail Welhouse Imagined Letter to a Prisoner During a Pandemic I write to you in prison during my solitary confinement. As you look forward to mail, I do not tell you I am afraid of mail and every other thing. I do not tell you once last week my phone went dead for an entire day and I almost lost my mind. Meanwhile, this being untouched and untouchable goes on. Do they let you out to exercise? Here too we walk, but cannot come near another person. Shouting salutations across the great divide, encrypted missives translate: Was it your husband? What about the kids? How long have you been in? While our eyes cry out: Where can we get toilet paper? In the grocery store, stressed beyond recognition, the masked and gloved direct us which lines on the floor to stay behind. We take what we can get. They have stopped testing. I know now you have it so much worse. What shall I write? They have lost count. What can I write? As Eliot said, last year’s words belong to last year’s language. This world is in a global pause. I wake myself crying out in my sleep to enter the place of deliverance. —Mary Kathryn Jablonski Disjointed Mornings, Disjointed Nights tell me why someday this will be worth it. remember us in a thousand years days of silence, blur together, i promise everything will be all right whatever. & good morning again. —Lily Raper (14 years) Commitment
old Cahoonzie Road with it’s funny sounding name always makes me smile
When you could not walk, I pushed you When you could not see, I guided you When you could hear, I whispered in your ear You loved me for being me I loved you for being you Gave my best to you Tried to see you through Now you are gone
—John Kiersten
—Frank Inello
—John Hansen
I leap to my porch and scream the filthiest word I know with a record-scratch rrr and the neighbors open windows as I close my door. It’s not what I meant; it’s just what I had at nine years old Still pricks my skin like burrs and chiggers on restless summer evenings I was taught better but at root I’m a digger down to the bones of my culture. I claim no hatred in my heart and yet in tribal battles fought I pulled the trigger Wielding my weapon in fear, I’m guilty of catching a tiger by the toe, a rigging, but I disown the gun, the rope, the chokehold, the separation I’m not innocent, but I hear you. it’s not my heart that matters if the rattling bones don’t get dug up and ground to dust for all of us Time to get the shovel out and prove I want to walk on level ground too —Tarssa Yazdani For George Floyd I scream nasty word to the walls Braided in fire they dissolve less than ash A smile above widens Rats regain their correct names A word echoes from a cave as rain spoils a picnic George Floyd is buried with song the hungry go on living and the devils cower but are not quite done —Roberta Gould
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Artist Playlists
A weekly series of playlists curated by artists
Artist Web Projects
Twenty-five years of commissioning projects for the web
Dia Blog
Read, watch, listen, interact
Watch & Listen
A comprehensive digital archive of twenty years of public programming at Dia
Explore Dia’s online projects and resources at diaart.org
—Abigail Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of A Three Dog Life
“Nature writing of the highest and most delightful order.” —David Van Biema, co-author ofThe Prayer Wheel
90 THE GUIDE CHRONOGRAM 7/20
Syracuse University Press
“For a walking companion with a witty, curious and unorthodox mind who is also a stunningly good writer, read Nina Shengold’s Reservoir Year.”
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Norm Magnusson Historic Maker Project June 10 - July 15 2020
In windows 236 Main St. Saugerties print sales benefit Boys & Girls Club Ulster County www.11janestreet.com Coming July 16-Aug 16 Joseph Conrad-Ferm
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exhibits
Olana Outdoor Tours
Our Shattered Planet, Ilse Schreiber-Noll
Joe and the Landfill, Rodney Alan Greenblat Photo by Alon Koppel
OLANA OUTDOOR TOURS
“THE DONATE $10 SHOW” AT BAU
RODNEY ALAN GREENBLAT AT HUDSON HALL
The silhouette of Olana as you drive over the Rip Van Winkle Bridge toward Hudson is iconic. The historic home of painter Frederic Church is opening its grounds to the public this summer for outdoor tours of the historic architecture and grounds on weekends from 10am to 4pm. Though primarily a painter, Church also designed the 250-acre landscape, including the five miles of historic carriage roads and planned views they link together. These plein-air tours will explore themes that were central to Church’s art and that of his fellow Hudson River School artists. Olana.org
Starting on Second Saturday, July 11, BAU will return to normal hours (Saturday and Sunday, 12-6pm) with a new exhibition: “The Donate $10 Show.” Open to all Hudson Valley artists, this salon-style affair will include one to two works from each participant, who will each make a $10 direct donation to the Community Action Project to raise money to feed the hungry. Gallery visitors are also encouraged to donate. One of the participating artists, Ilse Schreiber-Noll spent quarantine working on small gouache and ink drawings on paper and cut woodblocks. The resulting prints combine heavy black lines and warm colors in postcard-sized visceral works that evoke the confinement of lockdown. Baugallery.org
Known for his whimsical almost-childlike style, visual artist, writer, and designer Rodney Alan Greenblat is displaying both new and archival works in “Something to Look Forward To,” a playful, colorful show at Hudson Hall. The gallery is open to the public with a reservation Fridays, 1-5pm, and weekends, 1-4pm, a limit of 10 reservations per hour. Hudson Hall is also offering socially distanced guided tours of the exhibit on the weekends at 4pm, with a max of six per tour. $10 or free for members. Hudsonhall.org
Scratch Spin Amphora, Peter Pincus
Playground Entropy, Annika Tucksmith
Nestor Madalengoitia in his studio.
PETER PINCUS AT FERRIN CONTEMPORARY
“SHOWN FROM AFAR: ART DURING THE PANDEMIC” BY WOMEN’S WORK
POUGHKEEPSIE VIRTUAL OPEN STUDIOS
After his death in 2007, the New York Times called Sol LeWitt a “lodestar of modern American art.” Through his bold use of color and geometric shapes, he is credited with helping to mainstream Conceptualism and Minimalism. Peter Pincus’s new exhibit, on view at Ferrin Gallery at Mass MoCA, uses color theory and design patterns as jumping-off points to explore LeWitt’s impact. The exhibition brings together ceramic vessels, expansive tile murals, and drawings. Ferrincontemporary.com
For their online exhibition, “Shown from Afar,” Poughkeepsie-based gallery Women’s Work has brought together artwork produced during lockdown by women, femme, and nonbinary artists from across the country. Available through July 31, this virtual exhibition includes works on paper, hand-embroidered fabric art, photographs, collage, sculpture, and other media. All profits from the sale of works goes directly to the artists. Womenswork.art
Now in its sixth year, Poughkeepsie Open Studios is maintaining its commitment to showcase local artists while going virtual for their 2020 event. This year’s “tour” will include short videos of each of the participating artists and art organizations, showcasing their work, studio space, process, and programs. As of press time, registration was still ongoing, but 22 artists were already signed up, representing a wide range of mediums from kiln-formed glass to fiber art and porcelain painting. Poughkeepsieopenstudios.org 7/20 CHRONOGRAM THE GUIDE 91
Horoscopes By Lorelai Kude
SATURN’S LAST STAND MEANS “DO THE WORK”
Your work deserves attention. Which means you need a great bio for your press kit or website. One that’s tight. Clean. Professionally written. Something memorable. Something a booking agent, a record-label person, a promoter, or a gallery owner won’t just use to wipe up the coffee spill on their desk before throwing away.
When you’re ready, I’m here.
PETER AARON
Arts editor, Chronogram. Published author. Award-winning music columnist, 2005-2006, Daily Freeman. Contributor, Village Voice, Boston Herald, All Music Guide, All About Jazz.com, Jazz Improv and Roll magazines. Musician. Consultations also available. Reasonable rates.
See samples at www.peteraaron.org. E-mail info@peteraaron.org for rates. I also offer general copy editing and proofreading services.
It’s the Moon-month of Cancer, and the beginning of Saturn’s Last Stand, as the Retrograde Lord of Karma backs up into the final degrees of Capricorn, staying there until December to ensure we internalize his lessons. This six-month review of all the maturity, wisdom, self-discipline, personal responsibility, and ambition Saturn has empowered us to earn during the last two years will either be painful or powerfully positive, depending if we’ve done the work. Saturn teaches that doing the work means understanding the work is never done. This is the beginning of wisdom. The Lunar Eclipse/Full Moon in Capricorn on July 4 squared by Mars in Aries may truly be an Independence Day from rigid dogma, socio-societal constriction, corporate communal trauma and individual emotional isolation, but only if we are willing to open our hearts and minds to see beyond the broad swath of stereotypes, cartoonish political allegiances and nuance-stifling identity politics. This is the third consecutive Mars/Full Moon Square, building on the tensions of this ideological chasm. Chiron the Wounded Healer retrograde in Aries July 11 demands personal responsibility for the violence we do to each other as a society and to ourselves as individuals. It’s “fighting words” when Mercury squares Mars July 8 (retrograde), and July 27 (direct). Mercury Direct July 12 at the Last Quarter Moon in Aries inspires courage to speak truth to power. The second of this year’s two New Moons in Cancer July 20 offers another chance to heal our mother-wound. Leo Sun July 22 challenges ideas of true leadership. Our world is undergoing a profound societal shift. The tectonic plates of institutionalized power grind and groan against the pressure of cumulative communal injustice. Transformation happens when the pain of staying the same finally outweighs the fear of change. May the scales be tipped soon!
ARIES (March 20–April 19) Mars in Aries during July energizes you to charge forward, despite the feelings of restriction you’ve endured for many months, but the Sun in cautious Cancer squares both Mars and your own Sun, asking you to consider safety and security before plunging in. Lunar Eclipse / Full Moon in Capricorn July 4 challenges your independence by reminding you of your responsibilities; Last Quarter Moon in Aries July 12 with Mercury stationing Direct and the Sun trine Neptune invites bold visioning of the road ahead. The Sun enters Leo July 22, bolstering courage and bringing unexpected episodes of much-needed joy.
TAURUS (April 19–May 20)
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92 HOROSCOPES CHRONOGRAM 7/20
The lunar eclipse/Full Moon in Capricorn July 4 exposes the foundations of your faith so you may repair any cracks therein. Venus’s path revisits conditions you experienced mid-May: by First Quarter Moon in Scorpio on July 27 you’ll have unraveled the mystery which has been tugging on your heart. You’re now able to view reality without rose colored glasses, and if you’re ready to accept the imperfections which make us all human—including your own—it may be time to speak your truth to those who need to hear, despite the discomfort by the Mercury/Uranus sextile July 22. A practicing, professional astrologer for over 30 years, Lorelai Kude can be reached for questions and personal consultations via email (lorelaikude@yahoo.com) and her Kabbalah-flavored website is Astrolojew.com.
Horoscopes
GEMINI (May 20–June 21) Mercury stations Direct July 12 at the Last Quarter Moon in Aries and the Sun’s trine to Neptune. Bold, decisive action is now possible but only if you’ve overcome ambiguity about your real goals. Are you playing nice or playing to win? Venus and the North Node in Gemini inspire, empower, and energize creativity; New Moon in Cancer July 20 invites you to put your money where your mouth is and invest in those things that bring long-term security rather than fleeting pleasures. Fight for your creative rights July 27; don’t let others claim your ideas as their own.
CANCER (June 21–July 22) Lunar Eclipse/Full Moon in Capricorn July 4 squares Mars in Aries and puts you on full alert for encroaching invasions of destabilizing chaos. With two New Moons in Cancer this year—June 20 and July 20—you’ve got double opportunities to reset long-term intentions and recalibrate goals. The long learning curve you’ve been on over the last year and a half pays off in enhanced emotional intelligence and heightened sensitivity at the First Quarter Moon in Scorpio July 27. Your instincts are spot-on; don’t let deceivers gaslight you into believing you don’t know your own deepest truths.
LEO (July 22–August 23)
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A genius idea “out of nowhere” is conceived July 1 at the Sun’s sextile to Uranus and expanded upon, enlarged, and tested for viability July 14–20 when the Sun opposes Jupiter, Pluto, and Saturn. Separate practical reality from grandiosity and you are the better for it: What remains behind is the gold of your creative impetus minus the dross of delusion. The Sun enters Leo July 22, raising spirits, temperatures, and stakes in your future. Your entrepreneurial edge is sharpened as July’s transits compel you to put your house in order; the payoff is a clear, calm, uncluttered conscience.
VIRGO (August 23–September 23) Mercury’s retrograde ends July 12 and not a moment too soon. Communication challenges with friends, community, and the various affinity groups you associate with have been prickly and delicate during this time. You don’t want to offend but you’re compelled to seek truth, and those who can’t handle it may blame you for their own inability to accept reality, especially July 8, 22, and 27. It’s not your fault and it’s not your job to sway them, either—presenting factual information is your only duty. Your analytical superpowers are best focused on interpreting the language of your own heart.
LIBRA (September 23–October 23) The Moon opposite Venus July 2 highlights the gap between yearning for personal freedom while longing for partnership. Examine relationships for stability and long-term viability in the sobering light of the Capricorn Full Moon/Lunar Eclipse July 4. The square of Venus to Neptune July 27 seeks to resolve tensions between implied promises and ambiguous commitments. You may be asking too much of yourself right now; living up to your own expectations is hard work. Be gentle and realistic; the nurture and affirmation you’re looking for from others is something you must first learn to give yourself. You deserve kindness. 7/20 CHRONOGRAM HOROSCOPES 93
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Horoscopes
SCORPIO (October 23–November 21) Mars in bold, assertive Aries and powerful Pluto in practical Capricorn support deliberate, focused, and sustained effort as you attempt to relaunch this phase of your life. Retrograde Mercury’s square to Mars July 8 is repeated with Mercury Direct July 27. These parenthetical transits bookend seemingly insurmountable challenges, but by the end of the month persistent effort and more than a little bit of luck aid you in finding the answer—or the answer finds you. Courage is your resource and your cool-headed response to crisis brings appreciation and affirmation at the First Quarter Moon in Scorpio July 27.
SAGITTARIUS (November 22–December 22) The Sun’s opposition to Jupiter July 14 highlights the dynamic tension between what you share with others and what is yours alone. You’re not famous for being materially possessive, but when principle is at stake, sticky points of pride can cause friction July 21-22, especially involving family and the allocation of common resources. Empathy prevails when Jupiter sextiles Neptune at the Frist Quarter Moon in Scorpio July 27. Hidden motivations come to light and the opportunity to forgive and be forgiven, to release and be released, is yours now. Mercury opposite Jupiter July 30 enlarges conduits for compassionate communication.
CAPRICORN (December 22–January 20)
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On July 1, Saturn makes his last retrograde back into Capricorn, where he will linger until mid-December. This is Saturn’s Last Stand, your final opportunity until 2047 to integrate your planetary ruler’s positive gifts of maturity, wisdom, patience, capability, steadiness, responsibility, and self-control. Between the Lunar Eclipse / Full Moon in Capricorn July 5 and the Sun-Saturn opposition July 20 at the New Moon in Cancer, you realize the next six months of your life is actually a postgraduate internship at Karma University, where you’re writing your PhD on “Cause and Effect.” Choose your courses and instructors with care.
AQUARIUS (January 20–February 19) The Full Moon / Lunar Eclipse July 4 uncovers hidden family secrets, ancestral trauma, and unconscious projections of guilt and responsibility that do not belong to you. This revelation is intended to illuminate what is yours to own and what belongs to others and must be released. You feel safest with friends July 6–7 as you process new and expanded definitions of family and what that means to you considering your newfound self-knowledge. Sun in solar opposite Leo July 22 with Mercury sextile Uranus stimulates your creative, joyful inner child. Express your inspirational individuality in your own unique way.
PISCES (February 20-March 19) The Sun’s trine to Neptune at the Last Quarter Moon in Aries July 12 with Mercury’s direct station is like a lightbulb going off over your head. Your always fertile imagination is in overdrive this month, you’re having million-dollar ideas with enviable frequency. Jupiter sextiles and Venus squares Neptune at the First Quarter Moon in Scorpio July 27. This is the day to ask for everything and don’t think small. Your persuasiveness is practically hypnotic when Mercury trines Neptune July 30. Speak the magic words! Your instincts are tuned to the prosperity channel—turn up the radio and sing!
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Hickory BBQ & Smokehouse . . . . . . . . . . 10
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Bop to Tottom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
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Cabinet Designers, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Hudson Valley Native Landscaping . . . . . . . 53
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Irace Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
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Columbia Memorial Health . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
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Upstate Films . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
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Williams Lumber & Home Center . inside front cover
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Dharmakaya Center for Wellbeing . . . . . . . 40
Larson Architecture Works . . . . . . . . . . . 48
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Chronogram July 2020 (ISSN 1940-1280)
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parting shot
Gallery visitor Josh Shaw with ArtPort dog-in-residence Rubi(n) in front of an installation by Jelia Gueramian inside the Cornell Steamboat Building in Kingston. Photo by Stefan Saffer
The pandemic has posed a nearly impossible challenge for art galleries and museums: How to share art—actual physical work, not digital representations of such—in a safe and socially distant environment? One winning strategy: Have a gigantic space. ArtPort, an exhibition space housed in the cavernous Cornell Steamboat Building on Kingston’s waterfront, has launched two ongoing exhibitions that capitalize on its spacious digs. Inside the building, “The Ripple Effect” features a sprawling installation by Brooklyn-based artist Jelia Gueramian. Inspired by a childlike sense of wonder, Gueramian uses found materials to create alternative worlds that invite viewers to awaken their senses and lose themselves in another reality. Outside, “ArtStream” is a collection of site-specific artworks, installations, sculptures, and performances that will evolve over the course of the summer. Artport is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 12 to 5pm. Artportkingston.com —Brian K. Mahoney
96 PARTING SHOT CHRONOGRAM 7/20
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